Archive for the 'Economy' Category

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Israel to Question Billionaire in Probe

Published on April 29, 2007

A criminal state will beget criminals. A team of Israeli police will be leaving for Australia next week to question a prominent billionaire on allegations that Ehud Olmert tried to help him in a bank sale before becoming Prime Minister.

Israel to Question Billionaire in Probe
Friday April 27, 2007 7:16 AM
By MATTI FRIEDMAN
Associated Press Writer

JERUSALEM (AP) – A team of Israeli police will leave for Australia next week to question a prominent billionaire about suspicions that Ehud Olmert tried to help him in a bank sale before becoming prime minister, a police spokesman said Thursday.

The case is one of several corruption investigation that have dogged Olmert’s year in office. On Wednesday, Israel’s government watchdog agency recommended opening a criminal investigation against him in a separate influence peddling case.

Officers from the police fraud squad will question Frank Lowy in Australia, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld told The Associated Press. Lowy, a real estate developer and friend of Olmert’s, was No. 172 on Forbes magazine’s latest ranking of billionaires.

The investigation concerns Olmert’s role as finance minister in the government’s 2005 sale of a controlling interest in Bank Leumi, one of the country’s largest financial institutions.

In Economy, News and Events and Politics

Israel to transfer $100 million of taxes its withholds to Abbas

Published on January 18, 2007

Excuse me, what right does Israel has to withhold those tax monies which is the right of the PA in the first place anyway? Truly Israel is an undemocratic state. “Democracy” in Israel is just cosmetics.

A senior Israeli official reported on Friday that Israel intends to release $100 million of Palestinian tax revenues it withheld, to the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas by Friday, Israeli online daily Haaretz reported.

Haaretz added that the move is part of a U.S-led plan to bolster Abbas and make him able to make the long-due salary payments to government employees.

The United States and Israel led an embargo against the Hamas-led Palestinian government since it was elected last year.

Haaretz also reported that the Israeli Prime minister, Ehud Olmert, has been under pressure from the United States in order to take steps that would bolster Abbas and his power in order to weaken Hamas.

In Economy, News and Events and Politics

Israel probes Lowy, Olmert bank deal

Published on January 11, 2007

Oho, what is this? Israel to probe Olmert’s dubious bank deals with Australian Lowy. Looks like it is not only land that they are stealing.

ISRAEL’S state prosecutor will open a criminal investigation against Prime Minister Ehud Olmert for allegedly intervening in the sale of a major bank in favour of Australian shopping centre magnate Frank Lowy.

According to Israeli media reports, the investigation is likely to begin formally upon Mr Olmert’s return from China, where he is on a state visit.

Mr Lowy declined to comment last night, but a statement released when the allegations were first aired last October said that he was approached to be part of a consortium bidding for the Israeli Government’s interest in Bank Leumi, the country’s second-largest bank.

“After considering the investment and conducting some preliminary due diligence it was decided not to proceed with the consortium or the tender process,” a spokesman for the Westfield boss said.

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In Economy, News and Events and Politics

Israel stocks off record; Israel underweighted at Citi

Published on December 7, 2006

More signs of Israel going down the path of an economic collapse.

TEL AVIV (MarketWatch) — Israeli shares fell from their record highs on Wednesday, after Bezeq shares were downgraded at Deutsche Bank and Israel as an investment alternative was rated underweight at Citigroup.

The shekel continued to strengthen against the dollar, finishing at 4.2 against Monday’s 4.225.

The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange’s benchmark TA-25 index closed lower by 0.6% to 926.69, the TA-100 index shed 0.47% to 934.93, and the Tel-Tech 15 index of top technology stocks eased 0.3% to 380.95.

Continue reading ‘Israel stocks off record; Israel underweighted at Citi’

In Economy and News and Events

Report: Israel and Iran holding secret talks

Published on December 6, 2006

Ironic as it may sound, here we have Israel and its “enemy” Iran in secret talks together. Why? Because Israel owes Iran billions of dollars in oil money! Now I will leave you to form your own conclusions.

Report: Israel and Iran holding secret talks
By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Dec. 6, 2006 1:45

While Iran continues to deny that Israel has the right to exist, Iranian and Israeli representatives are holding clandestine talks in Europe to settle an old Israeli debt, Ha’aretz reported Wednesday.

Iran is still owed hundreds of millions of dollars for oil it supplied to Israel in the years before the Islamic Revolution in 1979, and representatives of the two countries, now sworn enemies, are holding contacts meant to settle the debt, according to the report in Haaretz.

The report was attributed to anonymous Israeli and Swiss officials involved in the negotiations.

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In Economy, News and Events, Politics and Zionism