Channels

Benjamin and Sara Netanyahu
Photo: Amos Ben Gershom, GPO

Comptroller to look into Bibi’s trips

State comptroller receives complaints over Netanyahu travels paid for by wealthy fans

State Comptroller Micha Lindenstrauss will launch in initial inquiry into complaints filed with his office over an affair involving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s trips abroad.

 

The inquiry into the affair, which also prompted a police complaint, followed an investigative report by Israel’s Channel 10 TV into trips by Netanyahu and his wife paid for by wealthy individuals and organizations with vested interests.

 

The report exposed Netanyahu’s travel log between his two terms as prime minister. This included dozens of trips, which in many cases were paid for by Jewish donors who could benefit from ties with the then-finance minister, Knesset member and premiership candidate.

 

Following the investigative report, several complaints were submitted to the state comptroller and to the attorney general, requesting that a criminal investigation be launched against the PM. As noted, Lindenstrauss will embark on an initial examination into the affair, before making a decision about the next moves and whether a more comprehensive inquiry needs to be launched into the prime minister’s conduct.

 

PM’s Office dismisses ‘smearing’

Thursday morning, Kadima approached the attorney general and asked that he look into the matter, including possible “criminal aspects.” The party also filed a police complaint over the affair.

 

Responding to the Channel 10 report, the Prime Minister’s Office dismissed the controversy, saying that “the questions ahead of the report were recycled and are full of false smearing. This reflects a longtime tendency by reporter Raviv Drucker to taint the prime minister’s and his family’s reputation.”

 

The PM’s Office stressed that Netanyahu never granted any perks to his friends while in office and never allowed an external element to pay for his children’s flights while he served in any public post.

 

 


פרסום ראשון: 03.25.11, 01:21
 new comment
Warning:
This will delete your current comment