It was abruptly announced on Sunday, a day after the above news broke, that Peres had resigned from the Knesset. He supplied no reason for his resignation.
Peres received $320,000 for the Labor Party primaries, which he lost to Amir Peretz despite polls predicting a landslide in his favor.
The donations, far in excess of the 36,000 shekel (approximately $8,000) per donor allowed by law, came from billionaires Chaim Saban, S. Daniel Abraham and Bruce Rappaport.
The State Comptroller refused to release the details of the investigation, but his office released a statement saying, "The comptroller views with great severity what transpired during the primaries, certainly without referring specifically to Shimon Peres." A spokeswoman said the investigation is ongoing and has not yet concluded.
The investigation was made possible by a law passed in the last days of the 16th Knesset, allowing the Comptroller to investigate candidates’ violations of the campaign funding law in primaries, and not only in general elections.
Peres' lawyer told Army Radio that "all donations were given according to the law, and approved by the [Labor] party's comptroller."
All three donors in question serve on the board of the Peres Center for Peace. Saban was, in the past, investigated for illegal funding of Ehud Barak's second election campaign.
S. Daniel Abraham has long been involved in Peres's independent diplomatic initiatives on behalf of the Jewish state. He founded the Center for Middle East Peace and Economic Cooperation with former Utah Congressman Wayne Owens, and served as its lone chairman since Owens was found dead in Tel Aviv in 2002.
Peres received $320,000 for the Labor Party primaries, which he lost to Amir Peretz despite polls predicting a landslide in his favor.
The donations, far in excess of the 36,000 shekel (approximately $8,000) per donor allowed by law, came from billionaires Chaim Saban, S. Daniel Abraham and Bruce Rappaport.
The State Comptroller refused to release the details of the investigation, but his office released a statement saying, "The comptroller views with great severity what transpired during the primaries, certainly without referring specifically to Shimon Peres." A spokeswoman said the investigation is ongoing and has not yet concluded.
The investigation was made possible by a law passed in the last days of the 16th Knesset, allowing the Comptroller to investigate candidates’ violations of the campaign funding law in primaries, and not only in general elections.
Peres' lawyer told Army Radio that "all donations were given according to the law, and approved by the [Labor] party's comptroller."
All three donors in question serve on the board of the Peres Center for Peace. Saban was, in the past, investigated for illegal funding of Ehud Barak's second election campaign.
S. Daniel Abraham has long been involved in Peres's independent diplomatic initiatives on behalf of the Jewish state. He founded the Center for Middle East Peace and Economic Cooperation with former Utah Congressman Wayne Owens, and served as its lone chairman since Owens was found dead in Tel Aviv in 2002.