The Israeli president rules out pardoning Netanyahu and is moving towards a judicial settlement

Israeli Channel 12 said that Israeli President Isaac Herzog does not currently intend to grant a presidential pardon to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the legal cases he faces. Instead, Herzog seeks to adopt mediation aimed at reaching a “plea deal” (judicial settlement) between Netanyahu and the prosecution.

The New York Times quoted informed officials as saying that Herzog is fully aware of the sensitivity of the charged atmosphere in Israel, especially in light of the conditions of war and the approaching elections. The Israeli President believes that there are “many options” that go beyond the limited binary view of accepting or rejecting the amnesty request.

Mediation details

Herzog seeks to find a way out of the current legal and political complexities by fostering informal talks.

His plan includes:

• Bringing together representatives of the Public Prosecution and the government’s judicial advisor on the one hand, with Netanyahu’s defense team on the other hand.
• Exploiting the flexibility of the legal situation to devise innovative solutions to reach a settlement.
• Considering this mediation as the “only way” to heal the rift and reduce the severity of the division in the Israeli street.

The position of the presidential office

The Israeli presidential office did not deny what was stated in the report, but rather confirmed in a statement that President Herzog had repeatedly stated that reaching a settlement between the parties in Netanyahu’s cases was “the appropriate and correct solution.”

The statement explained: “It is right, first of all, and before discussing the amnesty request itself, to exhaust any path that could lead to crystallizing a settlement between the parties outside the corridors of the courts, as negotiations are a necessary part of trying to reach understandings.”

Obstacles and terms of the prosecution deal

Israeli legal experts point out that any plea deal usually requires the accused to admit to a wrongdoing and impose a certain penalty. In the case of Netanyahu, experts believe that any settlement should be conditional on his agreement to resign from public office.

In this context, Yohanan Plesner, head of the Israel Democracy Institute, told the newspaper that the option of a prosecution deal is always available to Netanyahu, explaining: “Admitting guilt, expressing remorse, and agreeing to retire from political life and not run again are the essence of any prosecution deal. If the prison sentence is waived, this is the minimum that must be demanded.”

It is noteworthy that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not yet shown any willingness to admit to any legal violations or withdraw from public life.

In the meantime, Herzog continues to study the legal files to make his recommendation, as it is estimated that he has the authority to grant a pardon, but such a decision would be subject to judicial oversight.