Australian Probe Claims Billionaire Packer Paid Millions to Netanyahu's Lawyer

Australian billionaire James Packer allegedly paid $1.25 million to the office of attorney Amit Haddad, who heads the defense team for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to a report by the Sydney Morning Herald. The payments, made over two years, consisted of a $50,000 monthly retainer from a company owned by Packer to Haddad's firm. Packer has not denied making the payments, while Haddad declined to comment.

The report emerges as Haddad requested the court to depose Packer, whom the prosecution did not summon as a witness due to his medical condition. According to the indictment, Packer maintained a personal relationship with the Netanyahus between 2014 and 2016, during which he allegedly gave them cigars and champagne valued at approximately NIS 229,174. The state considers these gifts to be illicit benefits.

The Sydney Morning Herald stated that the first monthly payment was made on September 23, 2024, from Packer's company Consolidated Press International's account at Citibank to Haddad's firm's account at Mizrahi-Tefahot Bank. While a representative for Packer told the newspaper that the payments were for services rendered by Haddad's office in "scouting deals" in Israel and unrelated to the Netanyahu case, the report raises questions about a potential conflict of interest. Haddad himself had previously argued in court that Packer's gifts were legal because Packer had no business interests in Israel.

The newspaper found no evidence of any business deals Packer conducted in Israel. Consolidated Press International, one of Packer's private investment firms, reportedly held $600 million in technology investments, including in Nvidia and Meta, at the time of the payments to Haddad. A spokesperson for Netanyahu dismissed the report.