Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and businessman Arnon Milchan had code names for the different gifts that had been regularly given to the Likud leader, Milchan testified on his first day at the stand for the Case 1000 corruption trial on Sunday.
Gifts from Milchan to Netanyahu, which had become part of the norm, had been given code names like “uniform” for shirts or “leaves” for cigars, but they didn’t think there were legal issues. Milchan said that the gifts were requests, but not demands.
When asked about whether he gave gifts to the Netanyahu family, a vital component of the Case 1000 breach of trust charge, Milchan said “I don’t remember.”
However, when reminded of individual items, such as champagne, cigars, and jewelry, Milchan confirmed that he had gifted them to his friend, Netanyahu. The prime minister’s lawyer Amit Haddad objected when the gifting of a jacket was brought up, saying that it was not listed in the indictment.
Milchan recalled how he had purchased shirts from Netanyahu because of a conversation in which he said that his wardrobe was unsuited for a prime minister. More shirts were requested out of another conversation about his lacking wardrobe.
Press conference with Arnon Milchan, Shimon Peres and Benjamin Netanyahu. March 28 2005. (credit: FLASH90)Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the ‘Illegal Gifts Affair’
Netanyahu entered the courtroom late, flanked by his own security team.
“Hi, Bibi,” Milchan greeted him once he had been informed that the prime minister had arrived.
With the prime minister’s attendance, security in Jerusalem had been tightened to a far greater extent than it had been when opposition leader Yair Lapid gave his testimony in mid-June. Netanyahu entered the courtroom late, flanked by his own security team.
The prime minister’s wife, Sara, was set to attend the hearing from a hearing room at the United Kingdom courthouse. The prosecution and defense teams were divided between Jerusalem and Brighton.
Milchan detailed his friendship with Netanyahu, with the two having gone from being simple acquaintances to knowing each other “like brothers.” Milchan said he advised Netanyahu on certain matters and said the two had discussed history and economics. He also said he had close ties with other Israeli officials.
“I can’t detail some of the things that Bibi and I did in service of the state,” said Milchan, who had engaged in intelligence work for Israel in the 1960s.
They met in Caesarea, Balfour, and sometimes abroad. He said that his last visit to Israel had been about six years ago.
The prosecution asked about the role of Hadas Klein, Milchan’s personal assistant who had previously given testimony. Milchan said that she was his aide until today through Milchan Brothers and was responsible for letting him know what happens in Israel, and trusted her on financial matters.
Milchan gave his testimony remotely from Brighton ostensibly due to his health and seemed thin and weary from the stand in the United Kingdom courthouse, but attentive and in good humor. The film mogul coughed and spoke with a hoarse voice that he tried to soothe with water. He requested that the testimony end an hour earlier.
The video testimony, which was done through Zoom, was rife with audio technical difficulties, which delayed some of the proceedings. Multiple television screens were set up throughout the Jerusalem courtroom.
Milchan’s 10-day testimony on the “Illegal Gifts Affair” would address the allegations that he engaged in a breach of trust with Netanyahu. According to the prosecution, Milchan gave gifts of champagne and cigars worth hundreds of thousands of shekels to the Netanyahu family, allegedly in exchange for aid in business affairs.
Milchan allegedly asked Netanyahu for aid in securing a US visa by talking to then-US secretary of state John Kerry, and proposals for a tax law extension for returning residents were advanced by Netanyahu at Milchan’s request.
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