A video making waves on social media in recent days claims that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sara have a legal contract between them that gives her sweeping control over core aspects of Israel’s national affairs. This includes provisions for her to sit-in at top-secret meetings and to sign off on appointments of the heads of the Mossad intelligence agency, Shin Bet domestic security service, and the Israeli military.
In the video, David Arzi, former vice president of commercial and civil aviation at Israel Aerospace Industries, explains how he came to see the clauses of what he says is a 15-page contract that bears both their signatures. Arzi says he was allowed to read the document in 1999, during Netanyahu’s first stint as prime minister, by Netanyahu’s longtime lawyer and cousin David Shimron.
“She can take part in all the most secret meetings, even though she does not have security clearance. That jumped out at me,” Arzi says in the video, part of an interview in Hebrew with journalist Dan Raviv. (Below)
“She authorizes the following appointments, the head of the Mossad, the head of the Shin Bet and the IDF chief of staff. And that is in writing, she has to give the authorization in writing, if not, it is a violation of the contract,” he said, adding that “violation would mean he forfeits all their property to her.”
The alleged contract further makes various stipulations that give Sara major control over the couple’s finances.
“There was a very detailed section that she would handle their finances,” Arzi said. “It was written how; that he would not have credit cards, only she would. And if he needed money she would give it to him.”
Journalist Ben Caspit, who has written a biography of Netanyahu, published the results of two polygraph tests taken in recent days by Arzi that found him to be telling the truth.
Netanyahu’s office strongly denied the claims, saying they are “a complete and recycled lie that will be handled legally.”
“I have never drawn up an agreement between Benjamin and Sara Netanyahu, I have not seen an agreement drawn up by someone else and I certainly have never shown such an agreement to anyone,” he said, threatening to sue Arzi for libel.
