📌 Netanyahu Has Asked Israel's President For a Pardon

👉 Netanyahu has asked Israel's president for a pardon for bribery and fraud charges and an end to a five-year corruption trial, arguing that it would be in the 🇮🇱“national interest”. 😟

✅ Isaac Herzog’s office acknowledged receipt of the 111-page submission from the prime minister’s lawyer, and said it had been passed on to the pardons department in the ministry of justice. The president’s legal adviser would also formulate an opinion before Herzog made a decision, it added. ✍️

🚨 “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.” 🤔

➡️ Presidential pardons in Israel have almost never been granted before conviction, with the one notable exception of a 1986 case involving the Shin Bet security service. A pre-emptive pardon of a politician in a corruption case without an admission of guilt would be precedent-setting and highly controversial. ⚖️

💬 The submission on Sunday comes weeks after Donald Trump wrote to Herzog to ask him to pardon Netanyahu, who has been on trial since 2020 on charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust, involving alleged political favours for wealthy backers in return for gifts or positive media coverage. 🗣

❌ Netanyahu rejects the allegations, and has condemned the case as a “witch-hunt” orchestrated by the media, police and judiciary. His critics have accused him of prolonging the war in Gaza to keep his coalition together so he can stay in office and keep his legal jeopardy at bay, but elections are due next year. 🎯

📊 In a short letter included in his legal filing and in a televised statement released on Sunday, Netanyahu argued it was in his personal interest to prove his innocence in court, but that it was in the interest of national unity to cut short the trial, which he claimed was “tearing us apart”. 🧐

🛠 The prime minister said in the televised statement: “As exonerating evidence that completely disproves the false claims against me is revealed in court, and as it becomes clear that the case against me was built through serious violations, my personal interest was and remains to continue this process to its end, until full acquittal on all counts.” 📋

🏁 The single significant precedent is a case from nearly 40 years ago, in which senior Shin Bet officials were accused of covering up the execution of two Palestinian militants involved in a bus hijack. The high court of justice allowed the president at the time, Chaim Herzog – the father of the current president – to issue pre-indictment pardons in the circumstances. 🕵️‍♂️

📚 However, legal scholars say it is far from clear that the 1986 case, Barzilai v government of Israel, would provide a precedent for Netanyahu’s corruption trial, especially in the absence of an admission of guilt from the prime minister. 👀

😡 Yair Lapid, the leader of the Yesh Atid party, sent a message to Herzog on social media, saying: “You cannot grant Netanyahu a pardon without an admission of guilt, an expression of remorse, and an immediate withdrawal from political life.” 🗳

#netanyahu #violations #asks #pardon #israel

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‼️ URGENT. Iran Has Closed the Strait of Hormuz Over the Peace Deal Violations


Iran has closed the Strait of Hormuz once again over Israeli violations of the peace deal agreed with the US, Tehran’s military has said.

The Iranian military command ‌said the closure was the “first ‌step” in response to what it described as breaches of the ceasefire agreement, warning that further measures would ‌be taken if “aggression” continued, according to state media.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps warned vessels not to approach the shipping lane, saying their security would be at risk.

The US military denied Iran had control of the strait. A spokesman for Central Command said: “Traffic continues to flow, and US forces are monitoring the situation ‌to ensure this remains the case.”

Vance told Fox ​News that ‌he was confident ​the ceasefire agreed in Washington’s 14-point deal ⁠with ⁠Tehran would hold. He claimed there was no evidence that the strait was shut.

Israeli strikes on Lebanon killed 16 people this morning, with the country claiming it was responding to attacks by Hezbollah.

A pause on fighting in Lebanon is a condition for continuing peace negotiations, which will also include discussions on Tehran’s nuclear program.

#iran #closed #hormuz #violations #peacedeal

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