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In the latest twist in a billion-dollar civil case against the Bank of China over allegedly abetting Palestinian militants, the accusers are calling on a former top Israeli security official to testify, their lawyer said on Thursday.
The suit was filed before a New York court last year by the Israeli families of eight teenagers shot dead by a Hamas gunman at a Jerusalem seminary in 2008.
The families claim the Bank of China “facilitated” the attack and dozens of others by allowing millions of dollars in wire transfers to the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, via its New York City branch, in violation of US law.
The bank has denied the allegation.




				



The lawyer representing the families has sought to obtain testimony from ex-National Security Adviser Yaakov Amidror, who stepped down from the post earlier this month.
A key aspect of the families’ case was expected to be the testimony of former Israeli intelligence agent, Uzi Shaya. But in an unexpected turn earlier this month, the Israeli government filed a motion to block Shaya from testifying, saying it would “harm Israel’s national security”.
Amidror’s name was on the affidavit accompanying the government’s motion.
Shurat HaDin, the Israeli group representing the families, has accused the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of caving into pressure from Beijing to protect lucrative trade ties.
In a counter-move, Shurat HaDin has asked to cross-examine Amidror.
“We have sent a notice of deposition to Yaakov Amidror to appear before a hearing on December 10,” said Shurat HaDin director Nitsana Darshan-Leitner.
“We have a right to cross-examine him,” she said. “We want to understand why the issue [of Shaya testifying] suddenly became a “national security issue” after Netanyahu’s visit to China.
“Once Israel admits that the reason it is prohibiting the testimony is pressure from the Chinese, it would be a clear case of obstruction of justice and destroying evidence by the Bank of China,” she said.
Between 2005 and 2007, a group of Israeli officials, including Shaya, tried to negotiate with the bank in a bid to convince them to shut down all accounts used for transferring funds to Hamas and its smaller Islamist rival, Islamic Jihad.
The bank eventually closed the accounts in 2009.
In July, Israeli press reports said Netanyahu had bowed to Chinese pressure over the matter, saying Beijing had only approved his state visit in May on condition that he act to prevent the agent from testifying.
The court has not yet ruled on the Israeli government motion to bar Shaya’s testimony, with the next hearing set for January 15, Darshan-Leitner said.
Amidror refused to comment, while Netanyahu’s office issued a statement saying that allowing Shaya to testify would compromise Israel’s security and infringe upon its “sovereign immunity”.
“On behalf of the citizens of the State of Israel, we stand with victims of terror and their families and sympathise with their profound agony and pain,” read the statement.


Israeli spy official asked to testify in Bank of China lawsuit

The Bank of China is being sued for allowing wire transfers to Hamas, which made possible attacks on eight teenagers in Jerusalem. The lender has denied the allegations. Photo: Reuters

Former National Security Agency adviser Yaakov Amidror. Photo: Reuters

Israel gags key witness in lawsuit over Bank of China terrorism accounts

Sheryl and Tuly Wultz, parents of victim Daniel. Photo: MCT

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Lawyers want to cross-examine ex-security officer over the gagging of a key witness for the plaintiffs, who accuse bank of abetting Islamists


Israeli spy official asked to testify in Bank of China lawsuit

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Lawyers want to cross-examine ex-security officer over the gagging of a key witness for the plaintiffs, who accuse bank of abetting Islamists

Lawyers want to cross-examine ex-security officer over the gagging of a key witness for the plaintiffs, who accuse bank of abetting Islamists