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VIDEO / Gaydamak submits candidacy for Jerusalem mayor, as trial opens against him in Paris
By Haaretz Service
Tags: Jerusalem mayoral race 

Russian-Israeli tycoon Arcadi Gaydamak on Monday submitted his official candidacy for the Jerusalem mayoral race, just as a trial against him opened in Paris on charges of illegal arms trafficking, fraud, money laundering, fraudulent receipt and tax evasion.

The other secular contender in the mayoral race, Nir Barkat, will submit his candidacy on Tuesday.

Dan Biron, a veteran television director with Channel 1, also announced Monday that he is running for mayor on the Green Leaf Party (Ale Yarok) ticket. Biron officially presented the list to the elections commission yesterday, making him the first candidate to do so.
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The rest are expected to so Tuesday, and it seems mayor Uri Lupolianski is still leaning against running for a second term and honoring the rotation agreement he signed with Agudat Yisrael's Meir Porush five years ago. Six other parties presented their lists for the city council on Monday.

Former Shas chairman, Aryeh Deri, on Monday declared that he would not appeal a District Court decision barring him from running in the race, due to his past conviction of crimes of moral turpitude.

Gaydamak was expected to give up on his plans to run for mayor of Jerusalem after former Deri announced last month he was running for the same post.

Gaydamak's advisers had warned Deri's candidacy would seriously harm Gaydamak's chances in both the ultra-Orthodox and non-religious communities.

The billionaire recently decided to liquidate his business holdings in Israel and concentrate on his political activities and Social Justice party, as well as his bid for mayor.

Trial begins in Paris

The indictment against Gaydamak states that he and his former partner Pierre Falcone gave perks to senior members of the French government to promote their business deals.

As far as is known, Gaydamak will not appear in court, although in the past he has said he would. Gaydamak claims that he is a victim of French political power struggles.

The charges allege that mainly from 1993 to 1995, Falcone and Gaydamak used various intermediaries and sold weapons and ammunition worth $790 million from Russia and Slovakia to Angola, during that country's civil war. They also allegedly established a branch of the Slovak arms company ZTS OSOS without the necessary permits.

Falcone, who severed his ties with Gaydamak several years ago after financial disagreements, told Haaretz he had not decided whether to appear for the trial.

Around 40 former senior French officials are to stand trial, among them former interior minister Jean-Christophe Mitterand - the son of former president Francois Mitterand - and General Jean-Charles Marchiani, a senior member of the French security services.

From the indictment, sources and documents in Israel, it appears that Gaydamak had connections with intelligence officials in various countries. One of the defendants in the current case, Jean-Bernard Curial, is quoted by the indictment as saying that Falcone told him the arms company had connections with the KGB or was owned by former KGB officers "who knew Gaydamak well, as a former KGB colonel."

GSC, a security consulting firm established by Gaydamak in partnership with former Mossad chief Danny Yatom, and senior Mossad officer Avi Dagan, operated in Israel until 2002.

Police sources told Haaretz that investigators for the Israel Police's international crimes unit had the impression that Gaydamak had connections with the defense establishment and that the former head of security in the Defense Ministry, Yehiel Horev, had tried to intervene in various money-laundering investigations by the unit into Gaydamak.

Horev confirmed that there had been contact with the police about Gaydamak, but denied any attempts to interfere in investigations.

Related articles:
  • Gaydamak's fraud, arms trafficking trial starts in Paris
  • Is the Vatican supporting Gaydamak for mayor of Jerusalem?
  • VIDEO / Gaydamak likely to surrender Jerusalem mayoral race to Deri
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      1.   Does mayorality automatically earn immunity? 21:42  |  Esther 06/10/08
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