Nearly all Israeli prime ministers since 1996, including Netanyahu, Ehud Barak, Ariel Sharon, and Ehud Olmert, have been investigated on corruption charges, as have several other cabinet ministers, Knesset members, and mayors.
Here is an overview of the major corruption scandals in Israel over the past two decades.
benjamin netanyahu
Israel’s current prime minister was convicted on three counts – known as “1000”, “2000” and “4000” – of bribery, fraud and breach of trust, including allegedly accepting illegal gifts and trading regulatory favors for positive media coverage.
The case is going on. Netanyahu acknowledged receiving gifts but claimed that no gifts were returned.
On Sunday, November 30, President Isaac Herzog’s office confirmed that Netanyahu had submitted a formal pardon request, saying that his ongoing trial has divided the country as he goes on a spree of attacking neighboring countries in the Middle East.
ehud olmert
Former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who served from 2006 to 2009, faced numerous allegations of misconduct during his tenure as Trade Minister, Communications Minister, and Finance Minister.
Olmert resigned in 2008 – after holding the acting post for a few months – before he could be indicted after Morris Talansky, an American businessman, testified about giving envelopes filled with cash to Olmert in the 1990s for political and personal expenses.
Olmert was convicted of breach of trust in July 2012, bribery in March 2014, and breach of trust in March 2015. In December 2015, his six-year sentence was reduced to 18 months.
ariel sharon
From March 2001 to April 2006, former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was investigated for bribery over allegations that real estate developers and foreign businessmen had sought political favors from him and his sons in exchange for financial favors.
Despite recommendations to indict some associates, prosecutors ultimately did not charge Sharon, citing insufficient evidence.
However, his son, Omri Sharon, served a prison sentence for illegal fundraising related to the campaigns.
ezer weizmann
Ezer Weizman, who served as President of Israel from 1993 to 2000 after retiring as Air Force commander and Defense Minister, faced fraud and breach of trust charges for receiving large cash gifts of more than $300,000 from a French businessman while serving as an MP and minister.
Weizmann resigned as president in 2000 to avoid prosecution.
Although prosecutors determined that Weisman had accepted the money, he was never formally charged or prosecuted in court because the statute of limitations had expired by the time the investigation concluded.
Aryeh Dairy
Aryeh Deri, one of the founders of the Shas political party, who served as deputy prime minister under Netanyahu from December 2022 to January 2023, has been convicted of corruption twice.
In 1999, he was convicted of bribery, fraud and breach of trust; In 2022, he faced charges of tax crimes.
He spent almost two years in prison for his first conviction. For another, he signed a plea deal by resigning from Parliament to avoid jail in 2022.
Despite this, Prime Minister Netanyahu appointed him interior and health ministers, and parliament passed the so-called “Dairy Law” in 2022 that would limit the ability of Israel’s Supreme Court to review the “reasonableness” of government decisions.
In 2023, the Supreme Court disqualified him from serving as a minister on the grounds of “gross impropriety” due to his conviction on tax evasion.
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