Bibi rejects charges that U.S., Israeli intelligence conspired to defeat him

JERUSALEM [MENL] -- Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ended three tumultuous years with Israel's domestic intelligence chief with praise of his work and rejection of criticism by the premier's senior aides.

Netanyahu met with General Security Services chief Ami Ayalon on Sunday and praised his work in fighting terrorism. The outgoing prime minister, who lost the May 17 election, did not acknowledge constant reports of tension with the intelligence director.

Last week, Uri Elitzur, director of Netanyahu's bureau, criticized the security services of working against the prime minister.

After the meeting, Netanyahu rejected Elitzur's assertion. "They have worked with selfless professionalism, in line with my own and the government's instructions, and the results speak for themselves," he said.

Netanyahu also dismissed Elitzur's assertions that the CIA helped Labor Party chairman Ehud Barak win the Israeli elections. A similar assertion was made by Netanyahu's director of policy planning, David Bar-Illan.

On Monday, Likud parliametarian Uzi Landau, outgoing chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, criticized Ayalon's praise of new Knesset member Ahmed Tibi, former adviser to Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat. Tibi has pressed to become a member of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, a move opposed by Landau.

But Landau disputed the assertion by Elitzur that Israeli security services helped defeat Netanyahu during the May 17 election.