Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is considered one of the richest politicians in Israel, and Forbes magazine ranked him as the fourth richest politician in Israel in 2019, according to what the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported.
Some unconfirmed sources estimate that Netanyahu’s wealth reaches $80 million, while other sources believe it reaches 50 million shekels ($14 million), according to the “Times of Israel” and “Haaretz” newspapers.
Netanyahu owns real estate in Jerusalem and Caesarea, and is said to own other properties in California and New York. Netanyahu’s real estate holdings were the subject of great controversy, and many critics accused him of exploiting his position to enrich himself and his family, which could ultimately lead him to prison. Perhaps this is his deepest fear and the nightmare that haunts him.
The main problem Netanyahu faces is that when he leaves office, he will likely go to prison. He is accused of corruption, breach of trust, and taking bribes, and no one truly believes he is innocent. The only reason he is not imprisoned is that he is currently serving as prime minister and the country is at war, according to Gautam Mukunda, a writer and researcher at the Center for Public Leadership at Harvard Kennedy School, in a lengthy article in Forbes magazine.
Netanyahu, Napoleon, and gambling for resurrection
According to Mukunda, the best historical example that describes Netanyahu’s current condition is Napoleon Bonaparte in his last days. Facing the combined armies of Austria, Belarus, Russia, and the United Kingdom, all of which aimed to overthrow him as the primary objective of the war, Napoleon continued to fight even after his defeat was almost certain.
Perhaps Napoleon was the greatest military genius in history, and these last battles were among his greatest military strikes. But he lost nonetheless, and tens of thousands of French and European soldiers died for no other reason than to extend his hold on power for a few weeks and postpone the inevitable end of imprisonment and exile.
The same thing is repeated today: thousands of Palestinians and Jews are dying, and people are displaced from their homes amidst tears and blood, but nothing stops Netanyahu, for a very simple reason, which is that he knows that prison awaits him, and that everything will change on the day the war on Gaza ends.
This is not just a theoretical concern for Netanyahu, as there are previous examples, as former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was imprisoned in 2016 on corruption charges. Former President Moshe Katsav was convicted of rape in 2011 and spent 5 years in prison.
For Netanyahu, continuing the war is the only possible gamble, which is why pressure on him from all sides is not having an effect.
Corruption charges that haunt the “King of Israel”
Netanyahu likes to call himself the “King of Israel,” but he is a king in the dock, as he has been charged with 3 counts of bribery, fraud, and breach of trust. The cases in question are known as the numbers 1000, 2000, and 4,000, according to what the British BBC reported.
1- Case No. 1000
On charges of fraud and breach of trust
This case relates to Netanyahu’s relationship with businessman Arnon Milchan, an Israeli film producer in Hollywood, and with Australian billionaire James Packer.
In a document summarizing the indictment, Israeli Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit said that Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, received various goods from the two businessmen, “especially boxes of cigars and boxes of champagne.”
The Public Prosecutor confirmed that these goods were delivered continuously, “so that they became a supply channel,” and their value amounted to about 700,000 shekels ($198,000). In exchange for these lavish gifts, the Public Prosecutor said that Netanyahu acted in favor of the two men and facilitated their work in the country between 2011 and 2016.
For his part, Netanyahu insisted that these gifts were merely tokens of friendship and that he did not act “inappropriately” in return.
2- Case No. 2000
On charges of fraud and breach of trust
This case relates to meetings Netanyahu held with Arnon Mozes, a businessman and dominant shareholder in the Yedioth Ahronoth media group.
The Public Prosecutor accused the two men of conspiring and holding a series of meetings to promote their common interests so that Netanyahu’s news would be covered in a distinctive manner in the newspaper, and in return, Netanyahu would impose restrictions on a competing newspaper, “Israel Today.”
At the time that the series of meetings took place between the two men, a draft law was being considered that would limit the distribution of Israel Today.
3- Case No. 4000
On charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust
This case relates to what the Attorney General described as a “mutual agreement” reached between Netanyahu – who also served as Minister of Communications from 2014 to 2017 – and Shaul Elovitch, the controlling shareholder in Bezeq, the largest telecommunications company in Israel, which owns Walla News website.
Under the alleged arrangement, Elovitch and his wife, Iris, exerted “significant and sustained pressure” on Walla’s general manager to change its coverage in line with the demands and interests of Netanyahu and his family.
In contrast, the prosecutor said that Netanyahu “used his powers and authority as a public official to serve Elovitch and his economic interests, and took specific actions that promoted Elovitch’s business interests of significant financial value.”
The prosecutor charged Mr. Elovitch and his wife with bribery and obstruction of justice.
Netanyahu, Elovitch and his wife have denied any wrongdoing.
These are the three cases that the courts are considering. If we add to them the charges of negligence and failure to protect Israel on October 7, the picture will be complete, and we understand this insistence on continuing a war that his army commanders assert is useless and even destroys Israel’s image before the world.
Netanyahu’s money and real estate
And back to Netanyahu’s money. In addition to his financial wealth, he owns a luxurious villa in Caesarea (recently bombed by Hezbollah), Netanyahu also owns half of his parents’ house on Pioneer Street in Jerusalem, and his family owns a duplex penthouse apartment on Gaza Street in Jerusalem.
The total value of these three real estate assets is estimated to be between 35 and 40 million shekels ($10.1 and 11.6 million). In addition, Netanyahu owns a stock portfolio whose value the public does not know, but estimates indicate that it is worth a large sum of money, according to what the Ynet News platform reported.
It is also known that Netanyahu bought shares worth $600,000 in a steel company partly owned by his cousin, Nathan Milikowsky. In March 2019, it was announced that Netanyahu sold these shares for $4.3 million, 7 times the purchase price.
Netanyahu also receives a monthly salary of about 56 thousand shekels (about 16 thousand dollars) in exchange for his position as prime minister.
Netanyahu’s lavish expenses
All of Netanyahu’s expenses – including official residence, communications, maintenance, food, electricity, and water – are paid by the state.
The maintenance costs for the Prime Minister’s official and private residences amounted to 2 million shekels ($550,000) for the year 2023, a figure that does not include security, construction and other major costs, according to the Times of Israel.
The figure included 1.4 million shekels ($380,000) for service staff at the official headquarters in Jerusalem, 65,000 shekels ($18,000) for gardening, and 11,000 shekels ($3,000) for kitchen utensils, in addition to money spent on food delivery and internet services.
An amount of 22,000 shekels (6,000 US dollars) was paid to maintain the swimming pool at the Prime Minister’s private residence in Caesarea, and an amount of 35,000 shekels (9,600 dollars) was used as small cash amounts and special expenses.
After returning to his position as prime minister at the end of 2022, Netanyahu’s private residence on Gaza Street in Jerusalem temporarily became his official residence while renovations take place at the government residence on Balfour Street.
The Prime Minister has often been criticized for what is seen as excessive spending on a lavish lifestyle.
His wife, Sarah, faces accusations of living extravagantly, and State Comptroller reports found that she repeatedly tried to obtain financing for the couple’s private residence, including one case when she bought furniture for the official residence in Jerusalem, then moved it to the family’s villa in Caesarea, while the furniture was moved. From Caesarea to the official residence in Jerusalem.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister’s Office’s Freedom of Information Department said the state paid NIS 21.5 million ($5.9 million) for security expenses for Netanyahu’s adult sons Yair and Avner between 2018 and 2023. The cost of security for Netanyahu’s wife, Sarah, amounted to 10.65 million shekels ($2.9 million) in the aforementioned five-year period.
Finally, according to the Associated Press, while Netanyahu was facing trial in 2020 on charges of accepting gifts and bribes from wealthy friends, this did not prevent him from seeking another gift worth about $3 million from a wealthy friend, Spencer Partrich, a real estate mogul residing in American Michigan, but this time is not for him but to pay the costs of the lawyer who defends him in court against the charges against him.
