Twenty officials with the Arab Balad party were arrested Sunday by the Police National Fraud Unit on suspicion of campaign financing violations and money laundering. The police raided Balad offices in several locations nationwide, and seized computers, correspondence and banking documents. An official involved in the investigation said that at this point, none of the party's Knesset members are implicated in the case. A covert investigation into alleged financial improprieties in Balad was launched after a recent report by State Comptroller Yosef Shapira raised concerns of campaign financing violations. The Israel Money Laundering Prohibition Authority is also involved in the investigation. The case focuses on suspicions that Balad members failed to properly report campaign donations, as well as on funds raised from illicit sources. The suspects face potential charges including aggravated fraud, falsifying corporate documents, forgery, campaign financing violations, and money laundering. It is believed that over the course of several years, the suspects systematically misrepresented the origins of millions of shekels in Balad's financial records, failing to report donations and reporting foreign donations as having been made by Israelis, thus defrauding authorities. A Balad statement denied any wrongdoing by its members, and denounced the investigation as "political persecution." Balad "strongly condemns the arrest of dozens of its members. This is a dangerous escalation and another step to political persecution waged against the Arab minority in general and political movements in particular," the party said. "Balad strongly rejects the allegations brought against the party and its members. The party conducts all of its affairs within the framework of the law. Reports suggesting any financial improprieties or misrepresentation by Balad seek only to disguise the [authorities'] real intention, which is to silence Balad and undermine its political role as a leader of the struggle against oppression and discrimination." The raids and arrests "seeks only to tarnish Balad's image," the party said. "This demonstrates fascism and racism against the Arab community as a whole. All previous attempts at political persecution against Balad have failed, and this too will prove to be an attempt to make a mountain out of a molehill."
