Olmert's lawyers cross-examine U.S. businessman behind incriminating testimony

Attorneys for Prime Minister Ehud Olmert are cross-examining a U.S. businessman who is the central figure in a corruption case that could force Olmert from office. Friday's session in a Jerusalem courtroom is the second in a five-day cross-examination of Morris Talansky. Talansky testified in May that he gave Olmert hundreds of thousands of dollars before he became prime minister, much of it in cash-stuffed envelopes. The testimony caused public outrage and led Olmert's Kadima Party to schedule new leadership elections for September. Olmert's attorneys are trying to portray Talansky as a litigious businessman with an unsavory reputation and a faulty memory. Speaking Friday, attorney Eli Zohar said the cross-examination would show that Talansky was... [read full story]