President Donald Trump’s interference last week in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s graft trial could influence the outcome if a clemency request or plea bargain is ever considered, Israeli political experts told Al-Monitor.

Netanyahu stands trial on three cases (nicknamed cases 1,000, 2,000 and 4,000), where he is suspected of bribery, corruption and breach of trust. In the first case, he is suspected of receiving gifts from billionaires Armon Milchan and James Pecker. In the second and third cases, he is suspected of plotting to receive positive media coverage. The trial, which began in 2020, has now entered the stage where Netanyahu is testifying in his own defense. 

Trump slammed the ongoing criminal trial on Saturday, claiming that it harms efforts to strike deals in Gaza and with Iran. 

"How is it possible that the prime minister of Israel can be forced to sit in a courtroom all day long, over nothing," Trump wrote on Truth Social, adding that Netanyahu "is a war hero and a prime minister who did a fabulous job working with the United States to bring great success in getting rid of the dangerous nuclear threat in Iran."