Israeli Prime Minister (PM) Benjamin Netanyahu has asked Israel’s president for a pardon for bribery and fraud charges and an end to a five-year corruption trial.
Now, it has been passed on to the pardons department in the ministry of justice.
“The office of the president is aware that this is an extraordinary request which carries with it significant implications,” a statement from his office said. “After receiving all of the relevant opinions, the president will responsibly and sincerely consider the request.”
It is pertinent to mention that Netanyahu is up against three separate cases of corruption filed in 2019, which include allegations of bribery, fraud, and breach of trust. He denies the charges and has pleaded not guilty yet he requested pardon.
Netanyahu is the only sitting prime minister in Israeli history to stand trial.
Earlier, President Donald Trump urged Israel to pardon the prime minister. Trump also sent a letter to President Isaac Herzog calling the corruption case “political, unjustified prosecution.”
In a videotaped statement, Netanyahu said the trial has divided the country and that a pardon would help restore national unity. He also said the requirement that he appear in court three times a week is a distraction that makes it difficult for him to lead the country.
“The continuation of the trial tears us apart from within, stirs up this division, and deepens rifts. I am sure, like many others in the nation, that an immediate conclusion of the trial would greatly help to lower the flames and promote the broad reconciliation that our country so desperately needs,” he said.
