What is Benjamin Netanyahu accused of?
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(CNN) ––
Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's former prime minister, is discussing a possible deal with prosecutors in his corruption case, two sources involved in the matter told CNN.
The potential deal would likely see the most serious bribery charge dropped altogether, while another fraud and breach of trust charge would be mitigated and one of the three cases dropped entirely, according to information provided by the sources.
Benjamin Netanyahu will be indicted on charges of bribery and fraud and breach of trust
A key point of contention appears to be the sentence Netanyahu would receive for pleading guilty to the remaining charges.
In particular, the length of community service that should be completed.
The time of the sentence, key in the Netanyahu agreement
The reason the timing of the sentence is so important is because it would likely determine whether or not Netanyahu has a political future.
The specific question is whether the sentence will be greater or less than three months.
If it lasts more than three months, then prosecutors can insist that the convictions carry the taint of morality, which would bar Netanyahu, 72, from participating in politics for seven years.
Even if prosecutors were prepared to overlook immoral behavior, a future election commission judge could still rule that Netanyahu's convictions and sentence bar him from participating in politics for the same seven-year period.
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What penalty could Benjamin Netanyahu receive?
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However, if the sentence is less than three months, then the former leader can look forward to the possibility of resuming his career as a legislator when the next general election comes around.
All he would have to do in this scenario is face the sentence as a private citizen, something he could guarantee by submitting his immediate resignation to parliament.
News of the potential deal comes just weeks before Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit is due to finish his term on Jan. 31.
Mandelblit was responsible for bringing the charges against Netanyahu, after lengthy police investigations.
And it is considered that he wants to end his time in office with a successful conviction.
At the same time, there is a widespread feeling in Israel that anything other than a sentence that includes immoral behavior would be considered a lack of scope.
Precisely, given the seriousness of pursuing cases against a sitting prime minister.
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Netanyahu's trial has been ongoing since May 2020, although the evidentiary part only started in 2021.
The cases
The former prime minister faces charges in three separate cases. In Case 1000, he is accused of fraud and breach of trust in relation to allegations that he received gifts such as cigars and champagne from foreign businessmen. Within Case 2000, he also faces charges of fraud and breach of trust, for allegedly seeking favorable coverage in one of Israel's leading newspapers in exchange for limiting the circulation of one of the publication's rivals.
In the most serious case, 4000, he is accused of bribery, as well as fraud and breach of trust, for allegedly advancing regulatory benefits worth more than US$250 million to his friend Shaul Elovitch, who was the majority shareholder at the time. at the telecommunications company Bezeq.
In return, the prosecution says, Elovitch secured positive coverage of the prime minister on an online news site he owned called Walla!
News.
Netanyahu has always denied the charges, calling them a witch mill.
Elovitch also denies the charges against him.
Benjamin Netanyahu Corruption
