US PRESIDENT Donald Trump sent a letter to Israel’s president today asking him to pardon Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a long-running corruption trial.

It was the latest attempt by Mr Trump to intervene in the case on behalf of Mr Netanyahu, raising questions about US influence over internal Israeli affairs.

In his letter to President Isaac Herzog, Mr Trump called the corruption case a “political unjustified prosecution.”

“As the great state of Israel and the amazing Jewish people move past the terribly difficult times of the last three years, I hereby call on you to fully pardon Benjamin Netanyahu, who has been a formidable and decisive war-time prime minister, and is now leading Israel into a time of peace,” Mr Trump wrote.

Mr Netanyahu is the only sitting prime minister in Israeli history to stand trial, after being charged with fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribes in three separate cases accusing him of exchanging favours with wealthy political supporters.

Mr Netanyahu rejects the allegations, and in Trump-like language has condemned the case as a witch-hunt orchestrated by the media, police and judiciary.

He has taken the stand multiple times over the past year, but the case has been repeatedly delayed as he has waged his genocidal war on Gaza since October 2023 and violated the ceasefire his government agreed with Hamas last month.

Israel’s presidency is a largely ceremonial office, but the president does have the authority to grant pardons.

Mr Herzog acknowledged the letter, but said that anyone seeking a presidential pardon must submit a formal request.

Meanwhile, Mr Herzog condemned the “shocking and serious” attack by Jewish settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank today, calling for an end to a growing wave of settler violence in the occupied territory.

He said the violence committed by a “handful” of perpetrators “crosses a red line,” saying in a social media post that “all state authorities must act decisively to eradicate the phenomenon and to strengthen the IDF fighters and security forces who protect us day and night.”

His remarks came after dozens of masked Israeli settlers attacked the Palestinian villages of Beit Lid and Deir Sharaf in the West Bank on Tuesday, setting fire to vehicles and other property before clashing with Israeli soldiers.

Tuesday’s violence in the West Bank was the latest in a series of attacks by young settlers that have surged since the Gaza genocide began two years ago.

The attacks have intensified in recent weeks as Palestinians harvest their olive trees in an annual ritual.

The UN humanitarian office last week reported more Israeli settler attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank in October than in any other month since it began keeping track in 2006. There were over 260 attacks, the office said.

Palestinians and human rights workers accuse the Israeli army and police of failing to halt attacks by settlers.

Israel’s government is dominated by far-right proponents of the settler movement, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who formulates settlement policy, and cabinet minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who oversees the nation’s police force.