Olmert’s Chickens Coming Home to Roost? – Israel and The Sin of Expulsion

PM Sources: Probe Report ‘Speculation’, By Dan Izenberg (Jerusalem Post)

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Reports that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will face a criminal investigation upon his return from China are just “speculations,” sources close to Olmert said Wednesday morning.

The sources declared that “we have not received any official statement from an authoritative source on this issue,” Army Radio reported.

Olmert refrained from commenting Wednesday on a report he would face a criminal investigation upon his return from a state visit to China.

Channel 10 reported on Tuesday night that the State Attorney’s Office has decided to open a full-fledged investigation against Olmert regarding his alleged intervention in the government tender for the sale of the controlling interest in Bank Leumi.

According to the allegations, Olmert intervened in the tender for the privatization of Bank Leumi on behalf of two personal friends with whom he also had business connections, American businessman Daniel Abraham and Australian businessman Frank Lowy.

A preliminary examination of the case was conducted by State Attorney Eran Shendar. Mazuz reportedly disqualified himself from involvement in the case because his sister, Yamima Mazuz, is the legal adviser of the Finance Ministry and was in charge of overseeing the tender process. Olmert allegedly intervened in the tender after replacing Binyamin Netanyahu as minister of finance.

However, Mazuz is responsible for at least two other examinations involving criminal allegations against Olmert. One has to do with his purchase of a private home on Cremieux Street in Jerusalem’s German Colony. He is suspected of having bought the home for hundreds of thousands of dollars below the market price. In turn, he allegedly promised to use his influence at city hall, where he had served as mayor, to increase the contractor’s building rights.

Another case involves allegations that Olmert made political appointments in the Small Businesses Authority when he served as Minister of Industry and Commerce under prime minister Ariel Sharon. According to Channel 10, Shendar has already decided to investigate Olmert in the Bank Leumi affair.

The full extent of the investigation has not yet been determined, however. While police will likely concentrate on the alleged Bank Leumi improprieties, it is possible that the other scandals to which Olmert’s name has been linked will also be investigated.

In response to the television report, the Justice Ministry issued a statement saying: “We will not respond to any report, news item or speculation regarding the affairs linked to the prime minister. When the process of making decisions on these sensitive and complex matters is concluded, a process which is still going on, we will issue an orderly statement to the public.”

Meanwhile, the Internet news site News First Class reported Tuesday that State Comptroller Micha Lindenstrauss will “soon” be sending a letter of caution to Olmert warning him of the suspicions against him in the administrative sphere.