Sheldon Adelson Quizzed In Netanyahu Corruption Scandal
Image by getty images
Israeli police questioned U.S. casino magnate Sheldon Adelson on Thursday as part of an ongoing criminal investigation of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a law enforcement source said.
Netanyahu is suspected in two separate criminal cases of abuse of office. He denies wrongdoing in both cases and charges have yet to be brought against him.
The source said Adelson gave his testimony in regard to what police have dubbed “Case 2000,” involving suspicions Netanyahu negotiated a deal in 2015 for favorable press coverage with the owner of Israel’s best-selling newspaper, Yedioth Ahronoth.
Adelson, a supporter of Netanyahu and U.S. President Donald Trump and a major donor to the U.S. Republican Party, owns the widely-read free daily Israel Hayom. The handout is staunchly pro-Netanyahu and it is Yedioth Ahronoth’s main competitor.
The liberal daily Haaretz and Channel 2 television reported in January that the deal Netanyahu discussed with Yedioth Ahronoth’s owner was better coverage in return for curbs, possibly through legislation, on competition from Israel Hayom.
Adelson, who visits Israel periodically and was questioned in a police station near Tel Aviv, is not a suspect, said the law enforcement source who spoke on condition of anonymity.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we still need 300 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Only 300 more gifts needed by April 30
