South Africa’s ministry of justice has agreed to a request from Israel’s attorney general to help investigate a loan from a local businessman to Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.
Cyril Kern, who has a string of business interests in Cape Town, will be subpoenaed to give details of a $1,5-million (about R14-million) loan given to Sharon, Justice Minister Penuell Maduna said in a statement on Monday.
”The Israeli police will work with their South African counterparts, the South African Police Service and the Scorpions unit in the investigations.
”The investigations in South Africa will enable the Israeli police to obtain a statement from Mr Cyril Kern with respect to the donation.”
The ministry received a request from Israeli authorities last week to assist in an investigation into allegations of corruption that have stung Sharon’s re-election campaign.
The money was reportedly to serve as collateral for a loan Sharon’s sons, Omri and Gilad, took out to pay back a company from which the prime minister received irregular contributions during his campaign for the leadership of the Likud party in 1999.
However, Kern has said in an interview in the Sunday Times the loan was a personal gift to help the prime minister’s struggling ranch.
Maduna said local investigators would be looking into whether any South African laws, in particular foreign exchange regulations, were violated.
”Indeed it will also be our country’s objective to ensure that no money laundering took place during the course of the transaction,” he said.
Kern was not immediately available for comment but said last week that he and Sharon had been close friends for more than 50 years and saw and spoke to each other regularly.
”I loaned money to a friend and was very happy to do so.”
He added that he was not involved in Israeli politics ”in any shape or form” and that the loan had been repaid with interest. – Sapa