Sharon says he won't resign amid bribery scandal
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Ariel Sharon in the Knesset on Wednesday.
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Prosecutors consider indicting Sharon in bribery case. CNN's John Vause reports (January 22)
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JERUSALEM (CNN) -- Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is flatly rejecting calls for him to resign after an announcement by prosecutors that they have indicted an Israeli businessman whom they accuse of bribing Sharon.
The scandal involves allegations that Israeli businessman and political activist, David Appel, paid $690,000 in bribes to Sharon when he was foreign minister in the late 1990s, Israeli Justice Ministry sources said Wednesday.
The indictment, filed in Tel Aviv Magistrate's Court, said bribes -- which also allegedly went to Deputy Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, a close associate of Sharon's, and Sharon's son Gilad -- were used to get aid to develop a Greek real estate project and secure the rezoning of land near Tel Aviv.
Justice Ministry sources said they would decide within "weeks or months" whether to indict Sharon, Olmert and Gilad Sharon.
Between 1998 and 1999, Sharon was Israeli foreign minister and Olmert was mayor of Jerusalem. Both officials are members of the Likud party.
Labor calls for no-confidence vote
Some lawmakers from the opposition Labor Party have called for Sharon's resignation. The party is preparing a no-confidence motion for Monday, Israeli officials said.
But on Thursday, Sharon appeared defiant. "I am not about to resign. I emphasize, I am not about to resign," the Yediot Ahronot daily quoted him as saying.
"I am busy with work from morning to night, and I do not intend to make time for issues that are under investigation."
Prosecutors said they had 200 witnesses to buttress their case on Appel, but attorneys for the businessman maintain their client is innocent.
Defense attorney Moshe Israel told the Israeli newspaper Haaretz: "There was no bribery. There was no giver, and there was no taker."
Sharon and Olmert previously have said they did nothing wrong.
In the late 1990s, according to the charge sheet, "Appel gave Ariel Sharon a bribe in recognition of activities connected to the fulfillment of his public positions."
Appel enlisted the help of Sharon and Olmert because he was having trouble with the project, according to the indictment and prosecutors. The men were to meet with Greek government officials on behalf of Appel, and in return, they allegedly would receive help with their political campaigns, the indictment and prosecutors said.
The businessman is accused of indirectly paying hundreds of thousands of dollars to Sharon, the charge sheet said. Some of the money went to the prime minister's son, Gilad, who was allegedly paid an inflated salary for his work as a consultant, the indictment said.
Sharon's son, also a suspect, denies wrongdoing
The indictment said "Appel and Gilad came to an agreement, even though Appel knew that Gilad did not have the relevant professional skills. Appel came to an agreement with Gilad to pay out inflated amounts of money to Ariel Sharon's son with a purpose of influencing Ariel Sharon in his public positions."
In the past, Gilad Sharon has also denied wrongdoing.
The Justice Ministry said a decision on whether to indict Olmert and Gilad Sharon will be made at the same time as the decision on Sharon.
If Sharon and Olmert were to be indicted, Israeli case law indicates they would have to suspend themselves from office and await the conclusion of legal proceedings.
Sharon also faces an accusation that he received an illegal $1.5 million loan during his campaign to win the leadership of the Likud party in 1999. That investigation is ongoing.
CNN's John Vause contributed to this report.
