President Isaac Herzog does not currently intend to grant a pardon to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to a report in The New York Times citing senior Israeli officials.
According to the report, Herzog believes there are alternatives to granting a pardon, foremost among them advancing a plea bargain agreement. Sources familiar with the matter said that the president prefers to pursue that direction rather than make a direct decision on the issue at this stage.
It was also reported that Herzog sees his role as a unifying factor in Israeli society, and therefore does not intend to make a decision on the pardon at this time.
The President's Office stated: "As expressed several times in the past, President Isaac Herzog sees reaching an agreement between the parties in Prime Minister Netanyahu's cases as a proper and correct solution. Negotiations for an agreement are a necessary part of the attempt to bring the parties to an agreement."
"Therefore, the President believes that it is appropriate first, before discussing the pardon request itself, to exhaust a process that could lead to the formation of an agreement between the parties, outside the walls of the court," it was reported.