JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel’s attorney general said Monday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is not required to leave office following his indictment on corruption charges, giving a small boost to the embattled leader. Avichai Mandelblit said in a statement that Netanyahu can remain interim prime minister, just days after serving him with charges of fraud, breach of trust and bribery. Netanyahu is the first-ever sitting prime minister to be charged with a crime. The attorney general did not weigh in on whether Netanyahu could keep his other ministerial positions while under indictment. Netanyahu, Israel’s longest serving prime minister, has dismissed the charges as an “attempted coup” and refused to resign.

Source: Egypt Independent November 26, 2019 08:03 UTC