Mandelblit Says He Cannot Recall Approving Netanyahu Obstruction Probe

Former attorney general Avichai Mandelblit told Jerusalem District Court on Sunday that he did not recall approving an investigation of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for obstruction or inducing interference in an investigation. Answering defense lawyer Amit Hadad during his sixth day of testimony, he said he authorized subjects for investigation rather than the precise suspected offenses put to those questioned. Hadad presented a wiretap application concerning Netanyahu associate Natan Eshel that listed obstruction among its suspicions. Investigators had obtained a judicial order, but Mandelblit said the interception also needed his prior approval and that he stopped it.