Israeli opposition leader and Blue and White Party head Benny Gantz denied wrongdoing on Thursday following media reports that an investigation was being launched into a deal between a company he had previously led and the Israel Police.
Gantz himself is not a suspect, according to the reports, but the link with his old company could still influence Israel’s March 2 general elections, the AP reported.
Gantz dismissed the reports, telling Army Radio the allegations against his old firm were nothing new.
“It all sounds like political pressure to get this thing on the public’s agenda. I am totally at ease. This was checked in the past and no criminal suspicion was found,” he said.
Speaking with the Reshet Bet radio station, Gantz said, “This isn’t an investigation; it’s an announcement that an investigation will be held after the elections. I knew it would come because there is political pressure on the State Attorney’s office to do something.”
Blue and White has instead sought to focus media attention on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s indictment on corruption charges.
Following his retirement from the Israel Defense Forces, Gantz headed cyber-security firm Fifth Dimension, which entered talks with the Israeli Police regarding its product. According to Israel’s State Comptroller, the Israel Police may have violated Israeli law by not submitting a tender in its dealings with the company.
Israel’s Justice Ministry would not confirm the media reports, saying only that documents provided by the State Comptroller were being examined.
Polls predict that the outcome of the upcoming election will be similar to the previous two elections in 2019 that led to the current political stalemate in the Jewish state.
Netanyahu has denied all of the charges against him, claiming that the country’s left-wing establishment, the media and his political enemies are trying to remove him from power.
