The scandal involving the acquisition of submarines and other naval craft from German shipbuilder Thyssenkrupp in return for alleged kickbacks has been rocking Israel for over five years, and the end is nowhere in sight. On Jan. 23, following delays, arguments and various problems, the government voted to establish a commission of inquiry to examine the process of defense acquisitions as well as the approval by then-Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for Germany to sell advanced subs to Egypt.

The inquiry is more bad news for Netanyahu, who Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit had previously cleared of all criminal suspicions in the submarine affair. The commission will be empowered to compel Netanyahu to testify, and his testimony could prompt an in-depth investigation of his actions in this complex affair. Perjury would be considered an aggravating factor and is the last thing Netanyahu needs as he tries to negotiate a plea deal in his corruption trial involving unrelated charges.

The so-called “submarine affair” involves the 2009-2017 purchase from Thyssenkrupp of three Dolphin-class submarines and four warships to protect Israel’s offshore gas platforms. Last week, Israel and Germany finalized the purchase of three additional advanced subs, considered Israel’s most important strategic weapon providing second-strike capabilities in the case of a nuclear attack. The new $3.4 billion deal was delayed for years by German unwillingness to sign the contract once the corruption allegations over the first deal surfaced in late 2016.

The delays led the shipbuilder to raise its price, almost doubling the original cost for Israel. Netanyahu supporters are now using this price hike to argue that the repeated delays failed to produce substantiated corruption claims against the former leader and instead cost Israel money and severe delays in supplying the vessels, probably by the end of the decade.