Ex-Israeli Envoy Alleges Illegal Payments Were Made to Arafat
Former Israeli envoys to peace talks with the Palestinians were involved in the illegal transfer of $300 million in Palestinian funds to Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat through a secret Swiss account, one of the envoys said Thursday.
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said an investigation was opened Thursday into the charges. An Arafat aide mentioned in the report dismissed it as “full of baseless information.”
The money was transferred from an official Palestinian Authority account in the West Bank by Arafat and one of his top aides, said Ozrad Lev, a former assistant to onetime top Israeli envoy Yossi Ginossar.
Lev said he and Ginossar helped open and manage the Swiss account. As part of the business dealings, Ginossar made $10 million, Lev said.
Ginossar denied any wrongdoing.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
