AJA urges Herzog to pardon Netanyahu

The Australian Jewish Association (AJA) has written to Israeli President Isaac Herzog urging him to pardon Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, echoing a similar request made by US President Donald Trump.

AJA CEO Robert Gregory sent the letter on Wednesday, the same day Herzog announced he had received Trump’s letter asking for Netanyahu to be pardoned amid what Trump described as an “unjustified” trial.

The letter made clear that “Israeli political and legal matters will ultimately be for the Israeli people to decide” but detailed “the impacts being felt in the diaspora and growing concern among our community”.

“On behalf of the Australian Jewish Association, I write to you with deep respect and earnest concern and urge you to exercise your constitutional power to pardon Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu,” Gregory wrote.

“Prime Minister Netanyahu has served the State of Israel at a time of unprecedented challenge and threat. His leadership has helped safeguard Israel’s security and the continuance of the Jewish homeland. The ongoing legal process has divided Israeli society and risked undermining the unity and morale of the nation. This disunity is spreading to the Jewish diaspora, which is itself confronting major challenges amid surging antisemitism.”