Immediate past-Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is set to travel within a week to the United States for an undetermined amount of time for an operation on a prostate cancer that was "microscopic" only 18 months ago.
He originally disclosed his condition when he was facing a threat to his government due to criminal probes. The latest update on his condition came shortly before he was supposed to face a hearing on indictment, and he won a court challenge to his plans to leave the country.
Olmert first revealed in October 2007 that he had prostate cancer. In a dramatic announcement, he stated that a prime minister must be candid about his health. Olmert quoted physicians as saying, "Initial signs of a cancerous growth have been identified. It is a microscopic growth, which has not metastasized and which can be removed in a short surgical procedure. According to medical opinion, there will be no need for radiation or chemotherapy treatment."
Olmert, who took office after former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon suffered a strike that has since left him comatose, emphasized in his announcement, "The citizens of Israel have the right to know, and I feel obliged to inform them on this matter."
Olmert told then-U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice at the time, "I will continue working at full pace... and I will attend the international meeting in Annapolis [Maryland] before the operation," which he said would take place several week afterwards.
The former Prime Minister two months later told the public that he was postponing the surgery because his doctors advised him that there was no need for surgery at the time and that his condition was excellent.
Last May, a medical imaging scan did not show any need for immediate treatment for the cancer.
Last month, shortly after Attorney General Menachem Mazuz set a date for a hearing on one of three charges for which he faces indictment, Olmert announced that the cancer has taken a turn for the worse and that he required immediate surgery. Moreover, he said he would travel to the U.S. for the operation, although the two-to-three-hour operation is routinely performed in Israel.
Prostate cancer is very common in older men, and it is rare that care is needed outside Israel.
Olmert has made all of the announcements himself, and there have not been any statements directly issued by physicians, except when the original announcement was made in October 2007. Doctor Shlomo Segev said at the time that the surgery was delayed because it was "not urgent." Dr. Yaakov Ramon added that Olmert has a “limited growth” and that treatment could wait several months without any risk.
Court Arguments on 'Urgency'
The former Prime Minister faces an indictment hearing on the Rishon Tours double-billing scheme. The hearing was scheduled for next Sunday before Olmert announced he needed urgent treatment in the U.S.
The High Court rejected the State Prosecutor's argument that the former Prime Minister knew for several months that a hearing was imminent and that during that time, he could have taken care of his condition or could have informed the prosecutors of a change in his condition.
Olmert's attorneys cited his physicians' opinions in their arguments to the court and added that since he no longer is a public figure, there is no reason to rush for a hearing before Mazuz announces a date on the other two charges. The remaining cases involve cash transfers from American business Morris (Moshe) Talansky and alleged impropriety in Investment Center contracts that helped his personal lawyer Uri Messer.
Concerning Olmert's claim that he needs to go to the U.S. for the operation, Dr. Ofer Shenfeld, Chief of Urology at Jerusalem's Shaare Tzedek Medical Center, told The Jerusalem Post on Sunday that "all existing treatments for prostate cancer...are routinely used in Israel."
Yoav Yitzchak, the News 1 journalist who originally reported on the criminal investigations against Olmert, wrote Saturday night, "Olmert is trying to buy time...[until] Mazuz's term of office ends in the beginning of 2010."
The journalist added, "It is not a coincidence that Olmert pulled out his 'judgment day' weapon. From his standpoint, the weapon is prostate cancer... Simultaneous to the postponement [of the indictment hearing]..., Olmert is preparing for conversations outside of Israel for business deals. Don't be surprised if a businessman...hires him for his services as a special advisor" outside of Israel.
Yitzchak added that there is gag order against publicizing the medical opinions of the three doctors whose advice was presented to the court. He said that state prosecutors should have pressed the High Court to appoint doctors to assess Olmert's condition.
