|
Police grill Prime Minister
11/10/2007 14:42 - (SA)
Jerusalem - The fraud squad grilled Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Thursday for a second time this week over his alleged abuse of influence in the privatisation of one of the country's leading banks.
The probe into the 2005 privatisation of Bank Leumi is one of two criminal investigations looming over the 62-year-old premier, who has recently chalked up slightly higher approval ratings following a reported air strike in Syria.
Investigators arrived at Olmert's official Jerusalem residence shortly after 07:00 GMT and were questioning him under caution, likely to continue for several hours, force spokesperson Micky Rosenfeld told AFP.
On Tuesday, officers grilled Olmert for five hours on suspicion of breach of trust surrounding his alleged abuse of influence in the privatisation of Bank Leumi, Israel's second largest bank.
Police suspect that Olmert, then acting finance minister in the government of prime minister Ariel Sharon, tried to steer the sale of Bank Leumi towards his friend, Australian property baron Frank Lowey.
The bank was eventually sold to another company with no relation to Lowey. Olmert has denied any wrongdoing but questioning someone under caution means that anything he says can be used against him in court if charges are pressed.
Rising ratings
Observers predict the investigations are unlikely to reverse the trend of Olmert's rising ratings, which plummeted to historic lows after last year's war in Lebanon and a string of scandals involving senior government officials.
A poll published in the Haaretz newspaper on Thursday found that 28%, nearly a third of Israelis, believe the Bank Leumi inquiries against Olmert should be frozen so that he can concentrate on running the country.
It also found that just over half of Israelis, 51% of those questioned, support talks between Olmert and Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas that have raised hopes of reviving the peace process after a seven-year break.
Two weeks ago, Attorney General Menachem Mazuz ordered another investigation into Olmert's 2004 purchase of a Jerusalem home. He is suspected of having received an effective bribe when he bought the property for around $300 000 below market price. He has denied the charges.
None of various corruption inquiries focused on Olmert since he formally took office in May 2006 have resulted in any charges being pressed.
He has also been the sole senior leader to survive calls for his head after a government commission investigating the 2006 war against Lebanon's Hezbollah listed widespread failures in interim findings released in April.
Nevertheless, finance minister Avraham Hirshson was forced to resign this summer over a graft investigation and a close aide of 30 years was also forced to quit over a probe into alleged corruption in the tax authority.
|
News
