Justice Minister Yariv Levin testified on Tuesday in Case 2000, the “Yediot Aharonot-Israel Hayom Affair,” amid the renewal of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s trial in Jerusalem’s district court. Levin was questioned by attorney Yonatan Tadmor.
When asked by Tadmor what connection he had with Yediot Aharonot, Levin responded, "I met Noni Mozes [owner of the newspaper] himself three times, once when I entered the Knesset in 2009 or 2010, and it seems that there was another meeting during 2013 and a visit I did at Yediot Aharonot in 2016. Beyond that, I am in very close contact with journalists. I had contact with journalists at Yediot Aharonot all the time."
Netanyahu’s defense attorney Amit Hadad asked Levin to confirm “that the day-to-day relationship between politicians and the media at all levels is something that is an integral part of the occupation of a member of the Knesset." He also asked Levin if "from your point of view it is absurd to think that if you are in contact with a media person and ask to add a news item or take it down, it has not crossed your mind that you are in a conflict of interest."
Levin responded to this by stating, "Obviously, this is how everyone behaves. There is no other way. If we have come to this, it is not an easy situation. The assumption is that a media outlet covers you according to the importance of your activity, and in reality, this is not the case."
Hadad then addressed the three bills presented at the Knesset between the years 2009 and 2010, during Levin’s time at the Knesset, which concerned the Israeli newspaper Yisrael Hayom. “From Netanyahu's point of view, the person behind these bills is Noni Mozes. In your investigation, you specifically talked about a bill that wished to establish that the owner of a newspaper should be an Israeli citizen, and if you look at the press, you see that there is one owner who is the owner of a newspaper who is not an Israeli citizen," Hadad said referring to Sheldon Adelson, owner of Yisrael Hayom.
Levin stated he did not recall the bill, however, he approved in general.
Hadad then asked about similar bills, “You thought that Noni Mozes was behind the bills, and you didn't see anything unusual in it.” Levin responded, “It happens many times that the person who proposes a bill to you is an interested party. This is commonplace.”
Levin says Netanyahu instructed him not to promote Yisrael Hayom law
Hadad asked Levin to confirm that the prime minister opposed the Yisrael Hayom bill. Levin responded, “He gave me an unequivocal instruction not to promote the law, and since then, he has not given me any other instructions."
Levin’s testifying in court comes after the attorney's office informed Hadad on Tuesday that he was in a "clear conflict of interest” due to his representation of Shlomo Filber, the state's witness in case 4000, in the hearing he will have before the prosecution.
Hadad stated he was not in a conflict of interest and that the subject would be transferred to an ethics committee.
In case 2000, Netanyahu is accused of attempting to diminish the competitiveness of Yisrael Hayom in favor of its competitor Yediot Ahronot. In turn, Yediot Ahronot owner Mozes would alter negative coverage of Netanyahu to positive.
Yonah Jeremy Bob contributed to this article.