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Benjamin Netanyahu denies corruption ahead of police questioning Israeli police question Benjamin Netanyahu in corruption inquiry
(35 minutes later)
Benjamin Netanyahu has denied any wrongdoing ahead of his expected questioning by police as part of a corruption investigation, telling his political opponents to put any celebrations on hold. Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, is reportedly being interviewed by detectives investigating whether he broke the law by receiving gifts from wealthy businessmen.
Police were expected to question the Israeli prime minister on Monday over whether he illegally accepted gifts from wealthy supporters, media reports said. The questioning under caution is taking place at Netanyahu’s official residence in Jerusalem. The police team did not speak to journalists as they arrived. Reports said the questioning could last several hours.
The long-running inquiry has looked into whether Israeli and foreign businessmen have offered gifts worth tens of thousands of dollars, and another unspecified issue. Netanyahu has strenuously denied any wrongdoing in relation to a months-long investigation into gifts received by himself and members of his close family. Israeli media said police were investigating whether gifts worth hundreds of thousands of shekels were given with the expectation of any benefit.
The country’s attorney general, Avichai Mandelblit, has reportedly decided to upgrade the inquiry to a criminal investigation, but he has yet to confirm thie move. During a meeting of his rightwing Likud party earlier on Monday, Netanyahu said: “We notice reports in the media. We hear the celebrations and sense the way the wind blows in TV studios and in the halls of the opposition. Hold off on the partying, don’t jump the gun. I told you and I repeat: nothing will happen, because there is nothing. You will continue making wild allegations and we will continue leading the state of Israel.”
Public radio said Netanyahu had agreed to be questioned at his residence, with some reports saying the interview would take place at 7:00 pm (1700 GMT). Police refused to comment. The investigation comes at a difficult time for Netanyahu, whose poll rating has been slipping amid a series of allegations concerning his inner circle.
Screens were mounted at the entrance to the compound in central Jerusalem in an apparent bid to shield the investigators’ arrival. Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, have weathered several scandals over the years, including investigations into the alleged misuse of state funds and an audit of the family’s spending, even including sums spent on laundry and ice-cream. They have denied any wrongdoing.
“We hear all the media reports. We see and hear the festive spirit and atmosphere in television studios and in the corridors of the opposition,” Netanyahu told MPs from his Likud party on Monday, according to a video posted to his Facebook page. Netanyahu’s biggest rival, Yair Lapid, whose Yesh Atid party was ahead of Likud in the most recent polls, called for the latest inquiry to be concluded quickly for “the good of the country”.
“I want to tell them to wait for the celebrations. Do not rush. I told you and I repeat, there will be nothing because there is nothing. You will continue to inflate hot-air balloons and we will continue to lead the state of Israel.” Referring to drawn-out proceedings against Netanyahu’s predecessor, Ehud Olmert, who was eventually jailed for corruption, Lapid said: “If two prime ministers in a row fall from office because of corruption, it will be very hard to rehabilitate the public’s trust in its leadership. I want to remind the members of the opposition and the media that the presumption of innocent applies to every Israeli, including the prime minister. We need to let the police do their work.”
Police have carried out the inquiry in secret over the course of about eight months and recently made an important breakthrough, reports said. Some 50 witnesses are said to have been questioned. Naftali Bennett, another of Netanyahu’s rivals and an ally in his coalition government, said: “The prime minister should not resign because an investigation was launched. An investigation can end with nothing coming out of it.”
In July, Mandelblit said he had ordered a preliminary examination into an unspecified allegation involving Netanyahu, but no further details were given. Police have been carrying out the current inquiry in secret for eight months and were recently reported to have made a breakthrough.
The US billionaire and president of the World Jewish Congress, Ronald Lauder, has been among those questioned over gifts he allegedly gave Netanyahu and alleged spending on trips for him, Israeli media reported. In July, Israel’s attorney general said he had ordered a preliminary examination into an unspecified affair involving Netanyahu, with no details given. The Haaretz newspaper reported that billionaire Ronald Lauder, a longtime friend of Netanyahu’s, was linked to the affair.
Lauder, whose family founded the Estée Lauder cosmetics giant, has long been seen as an ally of Netanyahu, who in the late 1990s put him in charge of negotiating with the then Syrian president Hafez al-Assad. In October, Lauder was summoned by police for questioning “related to a certain investigation conducted by them and in which Mr Lauder is not its subject matter,” said Helena Beilin, Lauder’s Israeli attorney. “After a short meeting, he was told that his presence is no longer required and that there shall be no further need for additional meetings.”
Netanyahu has acknowledged receiving money from the French tycoon Arnaud Mimran, who was sentenced to eight years in prison over a €283m (£241m) scam involving the trade of carbon emissions permits and the taxes on them. Netanyahu has acknowledged receiving money from Arnaud Mimran, a French tycoon who was sentenced to eight years in prison over a €283m scam involving the trade of carbon emissions permits and the taxes on them.
Netanyahu’s office said he had received $40,000 in contributions from Mimran in 2001, when he was not in office, as part of a fund for public activities, including appearances abroad to promote Israel.Netanyahu’s office said he had received $40,000 in contributions from Mimran in 2001, when he was not in office, as part of a fund for public activities, including appearances abroad to promote Israel.
He has also come under scrutiny over an alleged conflict of interest in the purchase of submarines from a German firm. Netanyahu has also faced scrutiny over the purchase of submarines from the German firm ThyssenKrupp. Media reports have alleged a conflict of interest as the Netanyahu family lawyer, David Shimron, acts for the Israeli agent of ThyssenKrupp.
Media reports have alleged a conflict of interest over the role played by the Netanyahu family’s lawyer, David Shimron, who also acts for the Israeli agent of Germany’s ThyssenKrupp, which builds the Dolphin submarines. In May, Israel’s state comptroller released a critical report on Netanyahu’s foreign trips, some with his wife and children, between 2003 and 2005 when he was finance minister.
Beyond those issues, Israel’s state comptroller released a critical report in May about Netanyahu’s foreign trips, some with his wife and children, between 2003 and 2005 when he was finance minister. Netanyahu, 67, is in his fourth term as prime minister and currently heads what is seen as the most rightwing government in Israeli history. He has served as premier for a total of nearly 11 years, fast approaching the revered founding father David Ben-Gurion’s 13 years.
Netanyahu, 67, is in his fourth term as prime minister and currently heads what is seen as the most rightwing government in Israeli history. Polls have shown that if elections were held now, his Likud party would finish behind the centrist Yesh Atid, but that voters would still prefer Netanyahu as prime minister.
He has served as premier for a total of nearly 11 years, fast approaching the 13 years of of the country’s revered founding father David Ben-Gurion. The inquiry has led to fierce debates in Israeli politics, with Netanyahu’s allies accusing opposition politicians and some in the news media of unfairly pressuring the attorney general, Avichai Mandelblit.
Polls have shown that if elections were held now, his Likud party would finish behind the centrist Yesh Atid, but that voters still prefer Netanyahu as prime minister. On Monday, the regional cooperation minister, Tzachi Hanegbi, denounced what he called a “campaign of provocation and incitement” against Mandelblit. However, others have accused Mandelblit of moving too slowly in the highly charged case.
Netanyahu’s predecessor, Ehud Olmert, was forced to resign while dogged by corruption allegations. He was sent to prison in February and is serving 27 months, making him Israel’s first former prime minister to serve jail time.