Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dropped his bid for parliamentary immunity from prosecution on corruption charges, exposing the embattled leader to a possible trial that would decide his political future.
Mr. Netanyahu was indicted in November on charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust in connection with three corruption probes, making him the first Israeli prime minister to be criminally charged while in office. He denies wrongdoing and earlier this month asked lawmakers to grant him immunity from the charges, ahead of an election in March that will decide his personal and political future.
The Israeli premier announced his retraction in a Facebook post on Tuesday, an hour before parliament was set to vote on key measures that would have likely led to his immunity request being denied. A majority of lawmakers had vowed to refuse him protection from prosecution.
Mr. Netanyahu, who is in Washington for the unveiling of President Trump’s Middle East peace plan, said he didn’t want the ensuing debate over his immunity to overshadow that event Tuesday. People briefed on the contents of the plan described it as heavily tilted toward the Israeli position on key issues.
“At this fateful hour for the people of Israel, at a time when I’m in the U.S. for a historic mission to shape Israel’s permanent borders and secure its safety for the coming generations, another show of the removing immunity circus is expected in parliament,” Mr. Netanyahu wrote on his Facebook page.
He vowed to continue fighting the charges against him.
Mr. Netanyahu won’t be able to ask for parliamentary immunity again, as the indictment will now pass from the hands of the speaker to a court, according to Amir Fuchs, a legal expert with the Jerusalem-based Israel Democracy Institute.
Mr. Fuchs said the trial could begin within a few months, but likely not before the March 2 election, and possibly take many years to conclude.
Mr. Netanyahu’s legal troubles have contributed to an unprecedented period of political paralysis in Israel. Neither he nor his political rivals were able to form a government after back-to-back elections in April and September, with the country bitterly divided over whether Mr. Netanyahu should continue as leader while facing corruption allegations.
The prime minister has described the charges against him as a witch hunt and retained the support of his Likud party and other right-wing political allies, winning a party leadership vote in December by a large margin.
Political opponents accuse Mr. Netanyahu of striving to stay in power at any cost—including dragging Israel into a new election cycle—to preside over a government that would be more likely to grant him immunity from prosecution.
Benny Gantz, Mr. Netanyahu’s main political rival who was on his way back to Israel on Tuesday after meeting President Trump at the White House to discuss the peace plan, said Israelis should consider the sitting prime minister’s legal troubles when voting in the March election.
“Netanyahu is going to trial. Before the citizens of Israel is a clear choice: a prime minister who will work for them or a prime minister who is busy with himself,” Mr. Gantz, who is leader of the Blue and White party, wrote in a tweet.
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https://www.wsj.com/articles/israels-netanyahu-withdraws-immunity-request-over-corruption-charges-11580202673
2020-01-28 09:11:00Z
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