Israeli President rejects ex-PM's pardon-plea

Israel's President Reuven Rivlin on Monday rejected a request for pardon by former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who is in jail for corruption.

Rivlin said in a statement that "despite Olmert's long years of contribution to the country", the President's power to pardon convicted offenders should not become a meand to overrule the court's verdict, Xinhua news agency reported.

The request for early release was submitted by Olmert's lawyers on January 31, after Olmert served almost 12 months of his 19-month sentence for bribery and obstruction of justice.

Olmert, 71, could still appeal for an early release.

Olmert, who was in office between 2006 and 2009, started serving his term on February 15, 2016, after the Supreme Court reduced his six-year sentence to 18 months.

The court cancelled a previous conviction in the so-called "Holyland case", a corruption scandal involving a massive construction project in Jerusalem, but found him guilty in another bribery case and sentenced him an additional month for obstruction of justice.

Olmert is the first Israeli Prime Minister to serve jail time.

--IANS

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