Burglars snatch Labor Party files from Barak’s Washington pollster

WASHINGTON, Jan. 13 (JTA) — Did opponents of Israeli Labor Party leader Ehud Barak stage a Watergate-style break-in at the Washington offices of a U.S. polling firm working on his campaign for prime minister? The question gripped Israel this week after burglars snatched confidential files and petty cash from Greenberg Quinlan Research Inc. Stanley Greenberg, President Clinton’s former pollster and a partner in the firm, was recently hired as an adviser to Barak, along with Democratic Party consultant James Carville. The firm described it as “a sophisticated break-in of a suspicious nature.” District of Columbia Police and the FBI are investigating the incident, which occurred Monday night or Tuesday morning. Authorities and other sources said the burglars broke through an air conditioning vent on the roof of the Capitol Hill office, tore through the ceiling, dislodged an alarm system and then opened a door, possibly to let others inside. Greenberg’s firm provided no details about what was stolen, saying only that it appeared some of its international political work may have been targeted. In Tel Aviv, a Labor Party spokeswoman said materials about Barak’s election campaign were stolen. Tal Silberstein, who is managing Barak’s campaign in the run-up to the May 17 elections, was quoted as saying the thieves “knew exactly what they wanted because the only file taken was the one dealing with the Israeli campaign.” Another source said that political questionnaires were among the materials taken. The incident was quickly dubbed in the Israeli media as “Israel’s Watergate,” and several Labor legislators immediately pointed to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as the likely culprit. David Bar-Illan, Netanyahu’s spokesman, vehemently denied any connection between the prime minister and the break-in, calling any attempt to make such an allegation “an absolute obscenity.” The Likud Party issued a statement saying it hoped the thieves would be apprehended. “We hope that the burglary has no connection to the Israeli election and that it’s entirely coincidental,” said Washington media consultant Steve Rabinowitz, who has also been advising Barak on his campaign. “Of course if it turns out that there is a connection, we would view such a development with grave concern. It would be absolutely outrageous.”