BICOM

Israeli leaders from across the political spectrum reflected on the six-year prison sentence given yesterday to former-Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who became the first Israeli premier to be jailed.

Olmert was convicted at the end of March of accepting bribes to smooth over the construction of the large ‘Holyland’ real estate project, during his time as Mayor of Jerusalem from 1993-2003. Judge David Rozen yesterday handed Olmert a six-year sentence and a hefty fine; in his pronouncement he said that, “A public servant who accepts bribes is equivalent to a traitor.”

Responding to the sentencing, President Shimon Peres, who was a senior Kadima leader alongside Olmert, said that, “Personally, this is a sad day” but that, “This is the legal process which is custom in democratic states.” Expressing similar sentiments, Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, who served in Olmert’s government, commented that, “it is a difficult day when a former Prime Minister is sentenced. I have complete trust in the court and law enforcement officials, and the public should as well.”

The same message was repeated by Leader of the Opposition and Labour head Isaac Herzog, who said “it is a sad day for those who know [Olmert] personally for many years” but that the sentence proves “everyone is equal in the face of the law.” A statement by Jewish Home called it “a sad day for the citizens of Israel” but one on which “the State of Israel which has shown once again that there is no favouritism.”

This morning’s Israeli dailies feature prominent commentary on Olmert’s imprisonment. Writing in Maariv, Ben Caspit says that, “throughout most of the years of his career [Olmert] was tainted with corruption.” However, in Yediot Ahronot, Sima Kadmon criticises Judge Rozen’s accusation that Olmert is a “traitor,” commenting that, “Even those who think that the sentence was justified … should agree that the judge went very far,” while Shimon Shiffer accuses Judge Rozen of having behaved “as if he were power drunk.”