Rivlin eulogizes former minister Yaakov Neeman: 'A man of wisdom and reason is gone'
Hundreds, including senior political and judicial figures, come to pay their respects to the former justice and finance minister; 'You loved the State of Israel. Many times, you were the light that was sent in moments of crises and tension,' President Rivlin eulogizes.
Former minister Yaakov Neeman was laid to rest on Monday at the Mount of Olives cemetery in Jerusalem on Monday, with many senior political and judicial figures coming to pay their respects.
Among the hundreds of participants were President Reuven Rivlin, Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein, ministers Avigdor Lieberman, Ayelet Shaked and Aryeh Deri, Opposition leader Isaac Herzog and Chief Rabbi David Lau.
Neeman, who served as justice and finance minister, passed away from an illness on Sunday at the age of 77.
Neeman, an legal expert on taxation, was originally appointed director general of the finance Ministry in 1979 by then-prime minister Menachem Begin, a position he served until in 1981. Later, in 1996, he was appointed justice during Benjamin Netanyahu’s first term as prime minister, despite not being a member of the Knesset.
Neeman resigned just two months later, when then-attorney general Michael Ben-Yair opened a criminal investigation against him on suspicions of two counts of of perjury in the trial of Aryeh Deri, who was convicted for bribery. Neeman was eventually cleared of all charges.
After serving as finance minister between 1997 and 1998, Neeman was re-appointed justice minister when Netanyahu was reelected in 2009, a position he served in until 2013. During his tenure, the Israel Tax Authority revealed it had been investigating Neeman for tax evasion, which had allegedly occurred during his years as a partner in the renowned law firm Herzog, Fox & Neeman.
Neeman again resigned, and again was later cleared of charges by the Tel Aviv Magistrates Court.
A close confidant of Netanyahu, Neeman was a controversial character due to the numerous investigations but also due to his ambiguous statements made with regard to the place of religious law and the Knesset, and the possibility of Israel one day coming under Jewish religious law.
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TPS contributed to this story.
