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Saturday, February 14, 2026
Netanyahu’s office denies he pushed Trump to criticize Herzog over failure to issue pardon
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleLazar Berman is The Times of Israel's diplomatic reporter
US President Donald Trump’s statement on Thursday calling President Isaac Herzog “disgraceful” for not granting a pardon to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was “entirely his own initiative,” says a source in the premier’s office.
Herzog is reportedly seeking clarification from Netanyahu over whether or not he encouraged Trump to rebuke him over his hesitation to pardon the premier. The comments came a day after Trump met Netanyahu in the White House, leading to speculation that Netanyahu raised the issue during their sit-down.
“The prime minister learned about it from the media and had no prior knowledge of it, just as he had no prior knowledge of the president’s remarks on this issue in his speech in the Knesset,” says the PMO official.
The Times of Israel Community.