Last update - 00:00 22/10/2007
Mazuz deputy: Attorney General won't ask PM to suspend himself
By Yuval Yoaz, Haaretz Correspondent
Attorney General Menachem Mazuz is unlikely to ask Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to temporarily suspend himself in the wake of a third criminal investigation against him, Mazuz's deputy, attorney Raz Nizri, said on Monday.
Nizri's statement was made to the Legal Forum for the Land of Israel, which last week submitted an inquiry on the third probe against Olmert, in which the prime minister is suspected of granting improper political favors while serving as industry and trade minister between 2003 and 2005.
According to Nizri, Olmert's potential self-suspension should be a matter reserved for civil and political discourse, and not for the courts.
Nizri hinted that the Attorney General's Office has recommended Olmert avoid getting involved in the selection process for the next state prosecutor. The Forum has demanded he steer clear of the process as long as there are ongoing criminal proceedings against him.
According to a Justice Ministry statement on the third concurrent investigation against Olmert, the prime minister will be investigated on suspicions of cronyism while he headed an investment center operated by the Industry and Trade Ministry, alleged political appointments via the Small Business Authority and alleged political appointments throughout the ministry.
In a different case, the prime minister was questioned by police twice two weeks ago over suspicions that he tried to rig the sale of Israel's second-largest bank, Leumi, in favor of two associates during his tenure as finance minister.
Olmert is also suspected of buying a Jerusalem home from a real estate developer at a substantial discount in return for helping the builder obtain construction permits from Jerusalem authorities.
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