国际英语新闻：Ex-PM's bribery affair struck Israel

JERUSALEM, April 18 (Xinhua) -- Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert becomes headlines of local media again for his alleged bribery case, which analysts said struck every Israeli.

The 64-year-old former leader was forced to announce his resignation in 2008 in the midst of a series of corruption and fraud probes against him. For this time, he is suspected of receiving 3.5 million shekels (about 930,000 U.S. dollars) in bribes during his tenure as mayor of Jerusalem in exchange for assisting to promote "Holyland," an upscale residential housing project in Jerusalem.

Israeli State Prosecutor's Office said on Sunday that hundreds of witnesses were expected to be questioned in regard with the Holyland case. "I wouldn't be exaggerating if I said hundreds more witnesses are going to be interrogated in it," local news service Ynet quoted Liat Ben-Ari, spokeswoman for the Prosecutor's Office, as saying during a hearing at the Supreme Court.

The details of what is now described as "the biggest and most severe corruption affair in Israeli history" have been gradually unveiled in recent days following the lifting of a media gag order.

"BIGGEST CORRUPTION AFFAIR"

While several persons involved in the case have been detained by police for interrogations during the past week, Olmert's identity as the lead figure in the affair was not made officially public until Thursday by a court order, although press reports clearly tied him to the affair.

In a special three-minute televised appearance on Thursday night, Olmert vehemently denied allegations that he had ever accepted bribes. "I supported the Holyland project initially, yet the plans were changed completely after I was no longer the mayor, " he said in the statement, "I am wholly uninvolved in the changes that took place later."

The Holyland residential complex had been at the heart of heated controversy ever since bulldozers first started work at the site at the beginning of the decade. Local residents and green organizations argued that the project contradicts the city's urban landscape and comes at the expense of the city's few remaining natural forestry.

In the meanwhile, the designated area for the project, which originally could only contain 12,000 square meters of buildings, grew by 1,200 percent to 320,000 square meters.

Among the dozens of officials suspected of being involved in the scandal, Olmert is thought to have played the lead role as mayor, advancing the project throughout the building committees, removing technical obstacles and objections and awarding benefits to the developers.

The former prime minister is now facing a host of charges, including receiving bribes, money laundering, fraud and breach of trust.

WITNESSES AND SUSPECTS

Police and the State Attorney Office are now basing their case against the suspects on the testimony of an unnamed state witness who for years served as a middleman and allegedly transferred great sums of bribe money to Olmert's confidants on behalf of the developers.

To support his claims, the state witness, a 73-year-old real estate developer, has provided police with hundreds of documents, including photo copies of original checks paid to suspects over the years and meticulously kept, highly detailed diaries of bank transactions, names of bribe givers and takers, meetings and conversations.

But local media reported that the state witness' credibility may be in question. In the past, he was found to have lied in court in a lawsuit case against him. While police and the State Attorney still awarded him the status of state witness, which grants him full immunity from standing trial in the current affair. In exchange for his testimony against the suspects, he was also promised that all his debts to the loan sharks, an estimated 5.4 million dollars will be cleared by the state.

As the state witness provided a list that contains 35 names who allegedly gave bribes, accepted bribes and mediated between the givers and takers, police has made several arrests. Among them are prominent businessmen, real estate developers and former senior officials in the Jerusalem Municipality. Police officials say the investigation is still at an early stage and that further arrests are expected in the near future.

Some of the prominent figures detained by police include attorney Uri Messer, Olmert's former partner in a private law firm and a long-time confidant, suspected of acting as a middleman who transferred hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes given by the residential housing project's developers to Olmert.

Messer has turned state witness several months ago, and was due to testify against Olmert in other alleged corruption affairs linked to the former prime minister.

Another suspect in the center of the storm is Uri Lupolianski, Olmert's former deputy in City Hall who succeeded him when he left in 2003 to become a minister in the newly-elected Sharon government.

Lupolianski, a 59-year-old father of 12, is described as " Olmert's poodle." While acting as Olmert's deputy, he also headed Jerusalem's local Planning and Construction Committee. In this capacity, Lupolianski is suspected of having received bribes totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars in exchange for using his influence to promote the project while disregarding hundreds of petitions filed by local residents against it.

Police investigators are now also anticipating the return to Israel of Shula Zaken, Olmert's long-time confidant and his former personal secretary, believing she holds vital information relating to the affair.

Sources in the State Attorney's Office refused to comment on the possibility that Olmert will be detained for questioning, but said that his investigation may require detaining him. Arresting a former prime minister has the potential to raise severe security problems. As an alternative, the court may send Olmert to house arrest and seize his passport.

Ben Caspit, a leading political analyst, claimed that Olmert's TV appearance on Thursday should have struck every Israeli. "It was mostly sad to see Ehud Olmert, until recently prime minster, looking broken at the camera, trying to phrase his innocence," wrote Caspit, "it was even heart breaking. The average Israeli citizen should have been very sad for what has happened to us, for what has become of us, for who we are."