Trump formally asks the president of Israel to pardon Netanyahu

BarcelonaDonald Trump has long been trying to throw Benjamin Netanyahu a lifeline to prevent him from being convicted of corruption. Using Netanyahu as an example, the US president is pressuring his Israeli counterpart, Isaac Herzog. so that he will pardon the prime ministerwho is accused of bribery, fraud, and breach of trust in three separate corruption cases. The latest step he has taken has been to send a letter to Herzog formally requesting a presidential pardon, according to the Israeli president.

In the letter, which Herzog received Wednesday morning, Trump highlights the "current historic moment": "Together we have secured the peace that has been sought for at least 3,000 years." "I ask you to fully pardon Benjamin Netanyahu, who has been a formidable and decisive prime minister in times of war and who is guiding Israel into a time of peace, which includes my continued work with key Middle Eastern leaders to add many more countries to the Abraham Accords," the US president writes to the minister.

Trump asserts that he "absolutely" respects the independence of the Israeli judicial system, while also questioning it: "I believe that this case against Bibi, who has fought by my side for a long time [...], is a political and unjustified prosecution." The trial against Netanyahu began in 2020 and is still far from over. The prime minister has pleaded not guilty. Israeli by his first name: "Isaac, we have established a great relationship, a relationship for which I am very grateful and honored, and as soon as I took office in January we agreed that the focus should be on finally bringing the hostages home and achieving the peace agreement." forgiving him and putting an end to this legal dispute once and for all," he concludes.

Trump—who in May of last year became the first former US president to be convicted in a criminal trial, on 34 counts from which he was pardoned—has asked Herzog several times in recent months. speech in the Israeli Parliament last October, where he was invited after having mediated the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas.

Three corruption cases

Netanyahu is the first sitting Israeli prime minister to face criminal proceedings. He is charged with three offenses: bribery, fraud, and breach of trust in three separate cases. The common thread in the accusations is the use of his relationships with powerful media moguls to obtain personal and political gain.

Until now, Herzog has rejected the pardon application process, stating that it is the accused or their family who must request a presidential pardon, which has not yet occurred. This Wednesday, he extended an olive branch to Trump. "The president has great respect for President Trump," a statement from his office said, adding: "Without diminishing the above, as the president has made clear on multiple occasions, anyone seeking a pardon must submit a formal application in accordance with established procedures."