'The Bibi Files': Footage of Netanyahu interrogation to screen at TIFF
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Produced by Alex Gibney and directed by Alexis Bloom, the documentary includes a previously unseen police questioning video of Netanyahu.
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Likud center in the Knesset, occupied al-Quds on December 2, 2020. (AFP)
Israeli occupation Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is the subject of "The Bibi Files," a new two-hour documentary scheduled to appear as a work-in-progress at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).
Produced by Alex Gibney and directed by Alexis Bloom, it includes a previously unseen police questioning video of Netanyahu.
The recordings were made between 2016 and 2018 as part of an investigation to assess if Netanyahu should be indicted on bribery, fraud, and breach of trust allegations.
Gibney obtained access to the tapes in 2023. They include comprehensive interviews with the occupation's PM, his wife Sara, his son Yair, friends and allies, and household personnel.
Netanyahu's legal cases
The proceedings in Netanyahu's legal cases restarted in December of last year at the "Jerusalem District Court" following a hiatus of approximately two months.
The break was extended due to the Israeli war on Gaza, during which the courts operated in an emergency format, focusing on emergency hearings only. LAHB Unit 433 investigators Eran Bohnik and Datan Malihi are slated to testify, along with Lior Spitz, an investigator from the Securities Authority.
Minister Dudi Amsalem expressed criticism over the trial's resumption, stating on X: "The prime minister is preoccupied with illusory trifles, a shame."
Netanyahu's spokesperson, Ofer Golan, confirmed at the end of last week that the discussion is expected to proceed.
Netanyahu is being tried for charges including bribery, breach of trust throughout his term, and fraud.
Case 1000 (The Gift Affair):
Netanyahu is accused of receiving favors from businessmen Arnon Milchan and James Packer while serving as prime minister. The charges accuse Netanyahu of acting in Milchan's favor in various matters, damaging the public service's image and public trust. He faces accusations of fraud and breach of trust in this case.
Case 2000 (Netanyahu-Mozes Affair):
This case revolves around conversations between Netanyahu and Yedioth Ahronoth publisher Arnon "Noni" Mozes, which involved boosting Netanyahu's coverage in Yediot Group in exchange for imposing restrictions on its competitor, Israel Hayom. Mozes is accused of offering a bribe, while Netanyahu faces charges of fraud and breach of trust.
Case 4000 (Bezek-Walla Case):
Considered the most serious case, it involves regulatory benefits worth hundreds of millions of shekels that Netanyahu allegedly granted to businessman Shaul Elovitch. Meanwhile, Elovitch, along with his wife Iris, is accused of paying bribes to bias coverage on the Walla! website, which is controlled by them.
Previously, Netanyahu's son posted on X in defense of his father and accused senior prosecutors and police in "Israel" of "treason", which he hinted was a crime punishable by the death penalty.
Yair's accusations came in light of his father's trial, as he claimed that the senior prosecutors and the police framed his father in the ongoing corruption case against him.
In March of 2023, the Knesset passed into law a bill that would shield Israeli occupation Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from a court decision to impeach him, with 61 Knesset members voting in favor and 47 against, Israeli media reported back in March.
