Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has formally asked President Isaac Herzog for a pardon, saying his years-long corruption cases are deepening political tensions and distracting the country from serious security challenges.
Netanyahu, who continues to deny wrongdoing, said in a video statement on Sunday that the trials, which have stretched on for nearly six years, are expected to continue for many more. He said he had hoped to see the process through until acquittal, but the country’s current demands required a different path.
“The continuation of the trial is tearing us apart from within, arousing fierce divisions, intensifying rifts,” he said, arguing that ending the proceedings would help ease internal strains. He added that the requirement for him to testify three times a week had “tipped the scales,” calling it an impossible expectation.
US President Donald Trump recently wrote to Herzog urging him to grant the pardon. Herzog’s office confirmed receipt of Netanyahu’s request, calling it an “extraordinary” move with significant consequences. The president is expected to review opinions from relevant authorities before making a decision.
Netanyahu, 76, is Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, spending more than 18 years in office across three terms since 1996. He faces multiple charges, including allegations that he and his wife Sara accepted over $260,000 in luxury gifts from billionaires, and that he sought favourable media coverage in separate cases.
The investigations have sharpened divisions in Israeli society. Supporters have portrayed the trials as politically driven, while critics say Netanyahu is trying to avoid accountability.
Opposition leaders condemned the pardon request. Yair Lapid said Herzog must not grant it without an admission of guilt, remorse and Netanyahu’s withdrawal from political life. Yair Golan, leader of The Democrats, said “only the guilty seek pardon” and urged Netanyahu to take responsibility and step aside.
Members of Netanyahu’s governing coalition backed him. Defence Minister Israel Katz said a pardon could help heal a “deep rift” in society. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich insisted his far-right Religious Zionism party would continue pushing for judicial changes regardless of the pardon debate. He accused the courts of persecuting Netanyahu.
Netanyahu has indicated he plans to run in the next elections, which must be held before the end of 2026. The trials and the political turmoil around them follow a period of mass protests sparked by his proposed judicial reforms, which calmed only after the Gaza war broke out in 2023.