The High Court of Justice issued an interim order against State Comptroller Matanyahu Englman on Wednesday, barring him from continuing his inquiry into key aspects of the failures surrounding the October 7, 2023, Hamas invasion and massacres.

The court ordered him not to summon any officials to give their version of events or provide documentation for his probe, or to publish any draft or final report which he may have drawn up on specific aspects of his probe.

And the court also issued a conditional order against the State Comptroller to justify more broadly his investigation into areas of policy and strategy, which petitioners against his probe have said go beyond the remit of his office.

Conditional orders switch the burden of proof from the petitioners to the respondent, and indicate that the court believes a petition has merit. The judges gave Englman until February 1 to file his response to the petitions against his probe, but did not give a timeframe for a hearing.

The ruling was issued by Justices Daphne Barak-Erez, David Mintz, and Alex Stein. Both Mintz and Stein are considered conservatives.

Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli, in response, labeled the court “a circus” and called Supreme Court President Isaac Amit “a clown,” and claimed the court had no authority to intervene over Englman’s probe.

Englman said he would abide by the decision, but insisted his inquiry was objective.

And the Movement for Quality Government in Israel, one of the petitioners, said the court’s decision was justified due to what it described as severe flaws in the State Comptroller’s probe, including failing to speak with all senior officials included in his review.
The Military Advocate General’s Corps’ Military Defense unit, the other petitioner said likewise that the ruling was important in upholding the rights of senior officials being probed by Englman.

The State Comptroller’s........

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