Olmert not allowed to attend funeral of ex-Mossad chief
Meir Dagan's family asked for Prison Service to let jailed ex-prime minister pay respects to close friend
Former prime minister Ehud Olmert will not be allowed to leave prison in order to attend the funeral of former Mossad chief Meir Dagan, the Israel Prisons Service said Friday evening.
Dagan’s family asked the spy agency to transfer their request to the prison authorities. The family conveyed the request to attend the funeral since Olmert and Dagan were close friends.
The prison authorities said that Olmert did not meet the necessary criteria to be given furlough from prison and the request was denied, Channel 2 reported.
Earlier this month Olmert filed a request to be allowed to attend the bar mitzvah celebration of his first grandson. The IPS denied that request too.
Dagan passed away on Thursday. His funeral will be held on Sunday.
After retiring from the Mossad, Dagan established a company in partnership with Olmert and former IDF chief of staff Lt. Gen (ret.) Dan Halutz. The company’s dealings were shrouded in mystery, and Olmert was already tainted by corruption at the time of its establishment.
Olmert was sent to prison in February after being convicted of a string of corruption allegations. He was sentenced to serve 19 months.