BICOM

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s lead negotiator and diplomatic envoy, Yitzhak Molcho, has announced he would no longer fulfil the role.

In a letter to the Prime Minister he said, “as per previous correspondence with you, I respectfully request that you discharge me from my position… which I have fulfilled for many years as a national service on a voluntary basis”.

Molcho has a long history of leading negotiations with the Palestinian Authority (PA) on the Prime Minister’s behalf. He negotiated the 1997 Hebron agreement and the 1998 Wye River Memorandum. From 2012 to 2014, Molcho led a series of secret negotiations, that took place in London, with a senior envoy of PA President Mahmoud Abbas.

David Shimron is a partner in Molcho’s law firm and also closely connected to Netanyahu. Shimron is currently involved in the “case 3000” submarine purchase investigation, but there has been no suggestion from the Israel Police that either Molcho or Netanyahu are implicated.

The timing of Molcho’s resignation coincides with the deadline to respond to a High Court petition that argues, due to his proximity to both Netanyahu and Shimron, Molcho could face a conflict of interest in his duties for the Prime Minister.

In a letter to Molcho, Netanyahu praised his “rare combination of ability, experience and a deep and comprehensive knowledge of the issues”. He said: “Many leaders have praised you and noted that they could always talk to you freely because you never sought any sort of publicity for your great work and contribution. Like your father before you, you have worked on behalf of the country as a national and voluntary service.”

The leading candidate to replace Mocho is another llong-term Netanyahu advisor, former Director-General of the Foreign Ministry Dr Dore Gold.