Netanyahu Won’t Exchange Pardon for Leaving Politics

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared Sunday that he would not retire from politics even if he received a pardon.

When a reporter asked if he planned to retire if pardoned, he answered simply: “no.”

His announcement comes after he formally requested clemency from President Yitzchak Herzog in an effort to end the trial that has spanned years and continues to weigh on his ability to govern.

Last month Netanyahu submitted a formal request for a pardon. The submission included a detailed legal brief prepared by his lawyers, which argued that frequent court appearances were undermining his capacity to run the country effectively.

Netanyahu has denied all wrongdoing. He told supporters the trial is harming national unity, and he argued the ongoing legal process is “tearing us apart from within, arousing fierce divisions, intensifying rifts.”

Opposition figures have argued that any clemency should come only after accountability, not as a shortcut to freedom. They also are hopeful that a pardon would eliminate their political foe.

Washington has championed a pardon for Netanyahu for several months. Most recently, in November, President Donald Trump sent a letter to Herzog, calling the legal cases against Netanyahu “political, unjustified prosecution” and urging a full pardon.

In that letter, Trump described Netanyahu as “a formidable and decisive War Time Prime Minister,” arguing that pardoning him would help end what he characterized as lawfare and allow Israel to move forward.

Herzog’s office accepted receipt of Netanyahu’s 111‑page request and confirmed it has been forwarded to the pardons department of the Ministry of Justice for evaluation, stressing that this is an “extraordinary request” with “significant implications.”

While the office said the request would be “responsibly and sincerely considered,” the fact remains that it would break precedent to grant a pardon mid‑trial, especially without a conviction or acknowledgment of guilt.

Herzog acknowledged Trump’s pressure to grant a pardon, but stated that Israel is a “sovereign nation” and will do what it sees fit.