President Rivllin denies Olmert’s pardon application

Former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who is serving a 27-month jail sentence on multiple corruption charges, applied to President Reuven Rivlin for a pardon and was rejected. The president said Monday that his service to the country and its security as prime minister were taken into account when the court handed down its sentence. Olmert was prime minister from 2006 to 2009. If he serves his sentence in full, he will be freed in the summer of 2018, unless his application to commute his sentence by one-third is approved by the Paroles Committee.