Police query Olmert

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Police questioned Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert for 90 minutes under caution that he may face charges.

The interrogation Friday morning was leaked to media before it took place; it is not clear what it concerned.

Olmert has been questioned in recent years about a number of alleged crimes, including steering government contracts to friends and making illegal patronage appointments. None of the investigations have resulted in charges as of yet.

The secretive nature of the questioning, the news that Olmert had been given just 48 hours warning and the fact that the interrogation was “under caution” led media to speculate that police may be close to breaking one of the cases.

At least one member of his ruling coalition, Shelly Yachimovitch of the Labor Party, called for Olmert to step down pending the questioning. Olmert must step down if he is indicted.

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