From the Liveblog of
Thursday, July 13, 2017
Netanyahu dismisses corruption suspicions as ‘leftist campaign’
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tells his political allies that the corruption allegations linked to him and his associates are “a coordinated campaign of leftists who want to undermine my government.”
In a meeting with cabinet ministers and lawmakers who are his closest allies, the prime minister insists that he has “evidence for everything, it’s all lies.”
Netanyahu refers to the ongoing “Case 3000” inquiry into alleged corruption in the purchase of German-made submarines for the IDF and a new state comptroller report that alleges violations of transparency rules related to regulating the Bezeq telecom giant.
Netanyahu is not a suspect in the submarines affair, but his attorney David Shimron and other associates are. Similarly, there are no criminal suspicions directed at the prime minister in the Bezeq report.
In the meeting with Likud lawmakers, Netanyahu says the steady stream of corruption allegations is meant to create an “atmosphere of rampant corruption” to hurt him in the next election.
“This will soon be obvious to all,” he says.
The Times of Israel Community.