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Israel’s Netanyahu discusses deal in graft trial, source says By Reuters

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© Reuters. PHOTO PHOTO: Israeli opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at the opening ceremony of the Abrahamic Accords Caucus, attended by Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump, in the Knesset, Israeli parliament, on October 11, 2021 in Jerusalem. REUTERS / Ammar Awad

By Dan Williams

JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is negotiating a deal to end his corruption trial, an informed source said on Sunday, but spoke of a condition that would remove him from politics.

Netanyahu, who lost power in June for 12 consecutive years as prime minister and is now the leader of the opposition, has pleaded not guilty to bribery, breach of trust and fraud in three cases in 2019. They are all being judged together.

The source said that Netanyahu, 72, was discussing an agreement with Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit, according to which he would plead guilty to the charge reduction and change the resulting prison sentence to community service.

But talks have been blamed on Netanyahu’s request to waive a sentence with a “moral rent” clause that would force him to leave politics for years under Israeli law, the source told Reuters on condition of anonymity.

The State Attorney’s Office declined to comment. A Netanyahu lawyer, who denied all wrongdoing and accused the prosecutor of a politically motivated witch hunt, did not immediately respond to the request for comment.

Netanyahu has vowed to overthrow his successor, Naftali Bennett, a nationalist who is on top of a multi-party coalition.

Likud did not form a new government last year, in part because his relatives refused to join Netanyahu, citing the ongoing trial.

With his legal issues behind him, Netanyahu may in theory be able to form a broad new right-wing coalition. If banned from politics, right-wing members of Bennett’s coalition would be able to form a new government with a Likud party under the new leadership.

Former Supreme Court President Aharon Barak promoted the idea of ​​the deal.

Kan told radio that he would ease the pressure on the justice system, and for years he had been defending Netanyahu’s allegations against loyalists because he was being denied justice.

Netanyahu’s Likud Conservative Party spokesman said he was not aware of such negotiations.

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