President Trump was addressing a grateful Israeli Parliament on Monday, after the first of 20 hostages were released by Hamas in a deal he helped broker, when he made an unexpected suggestion: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, currently on trial for corruption, should be pardoned.
“Hey, I have an idea,” Mr. Trump said to the holder of Israel’s largely ceremonial presidency, Isaac Herzog. “Mr. President, why don’t you give him a pardon?”
Since 2020, Mr. Netanyahu has been on trial for corruption in three separate but related cases. He is accused of receiving cigars, Champagne, bracelets, bags and luxury clothes; disrupting investigative and judicial proceedings; and demanding fawning coverage by two leading Israeli news outlets.
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