Senior aides and advisers to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert are confident the prime minister will prove his innocence and ride out the political storm. They state that the first round is already behind us and the suspense that surrounded the lifting of the court-imposed gag order is beginning to fade.

NOTE: It should be remembered that former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, in the Cyril Kern investigation against him, one of many, was alleged to have accepted sums far larger than Olmert and he managed to evade prosecution.

Aides do not believe that the prime minister will be questioned by police this week, as the prime minister prepares for a visit from US President George W. Bush.

Addressing a Kadima Party function over the weekend, the prime minister did not make mention of the ongoing investigation against him. Longtime Olmert confidant Shula Zaken and state witness Moshe Talansky are both expected to be interviewed by police again this week. According to reports in the mainstream media, Zaken will be questioned Sunday for a sixth time. She is under house arrest and prohibited from discussing the case with others.

Olmert’s attorneys are contemplating a petition to the High Court of Justice against the Jerusalem District Court decision permitting the state to obtain advanced testimony from key witness Moshe Talansky.

In the meantime, the New York Times continues to uncover corruption tied to Olmert, reporting that while serving as a government minister in 2005, Olmert was a guest at the Ritz Carlton in Washington, with Talansky picking up the bill, $4,717.49 a night.

Hotel officials report the cost of their presidential suites is $4,450 a night, adding there are a number of such suites located on the 8th, 9th, and 11th floors. While serving as a minister in the Sharon cabinet Olmert did lodge in the hotel, using it to hold meetings as well. After becoming prime minister, he began staying in a different hotel for a number of reasons, including security.

(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)