Right wing in uproar over appointment of new state attorney

Justice Minister Tzipi Livni on Tuesday welcomed the State Attorney's Office search committee's decision to name Deputy Attorney-GeneralShai Nitzanfor the position of Israel's next state attorney. Livni will present the nomination for a cabinet vote on Sunday.

"I have known Shai Nitzan for years. We worked closely during my first term as justice minister. I witnessed his unwavering position on law enforcement firsthand and I was very impressed by his common sense and ethics," Livni said. "I'm sure he will continue to fiercely fight for the rule of law in Israel."

If approved, Nitzan will become Israel's 11th state attorney. He will replace State Attorney Moshe Lador, whose six-year term in office will end in December.

"I'm honored by the search committee's decision. The position of state attorney is one of great importance and I'm aware of the enormity of the responsibility it entails. I will patiently await the government's decision on the matter," Nitzan told reporters.

"I think this was a good choice," former Attorney-General Menachem Mazuz told Israel Hayom. "Nitzan is a very experienced litigator, who has a broad perspective on many diverse issues. I'm sure he will do an excellent job."

Former Deputy Attorney-General Mike Ballas also lauded the nomination: "Shai Nitzan is a talented, experienced and highly successful attorney. I have no doubt the he will do right by the law enforcement system. He has the ability to lead the State Attorney's Office forward."

Opposition Leader MK Shelly Yachimovich (Labor) welcomed the nomination, saying Nitzan "has always been the epitome of a law enforcement official, even while facing constant pressure by elements seeking to crush the judiciary. He is an independent thinker who has already proven that he will not back down over threats and pressure."

Nitzan, who has been resolute in enforcing incitement laws, which saw the State Attorney's Office file dozens of indictment charges against settlers in Judea and Samaria over the past few years, is considered a "red flag" for the political Right and his nomination garnered harsh criticism.

Deputy Transportation Minister Tzipi Hotovely (Likud) urged the government to reject the nomination saying, "Shai Nitzan has been using his position within the State Attorney's Office to force his own political views on the government. The government should seek an attorney who is experienced in fighting organized crime -- not someone who has a record of selective law enforcement."

Coalition Chairman MK Yariv Levin (Likud) panned the nomination, saying the search committee's process was tainted: "This nomination is the product of an invalid process, of the 'buddy system' prevalent in the judiciary's higher levels. This nomination was decided on in back rooms, behind the scenes and without the proper public debate. It ignored the need to present the government with several candidates so that it may truly choose one."

MK Orit Struck (Habayit Hayehudi) leveled harsh criticism at the nomination saying that, "A government that opts for nominating a state attorney whose hostile policies toward the settlement enterprise in Judea and Samaria are well known forfeits the right to complain in the future that the judiciary if forcing it to promote policies it disagrees with."

Housing Minister Uri Ariel (Habayit Hayehudi) and Tourism Minister Uzi Landau (Yisrael Beytenu) said they would vote against the nomination, citing they opposed to the search committee's decision-making process.

"This is presented as a done deal. If there is only one candidate to choose from, it's not much of a choice," Ariel told Army Radio on Wednesday.

"Regardless of the man in question, I vehemently oppose this system, this unacceptable practice, where some search committee decides on one person and he is the one presented to the cabinet as the only choice," Landau told Army Radio Tuesday. "This is just another characteristic of a system that has effectively stripped the ministers, who were elected by the public to promote policy, from their authority, and has given clerks the power to name senior public officials," he said.

Attorney Dvorah Chen, formally head of the National Security Cases Department at the State Attorney's Office, warned against allowing politics to cloud the decision: "It would be disastrous for the State of Israel if political elements -- from either side of the spectrum -- become involved in the state attorney's nomination process. If [Nitzan's] nomination will be disqualified over political considerations, it will be the beginning of the end of the State Attorney's Office and an impartial body."