The news hit the headlines in Israel without warning: On Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked President Isaac Herzog to grant him a preemptive pardon , ending his corruption trial. It would be a highly controversial, almost unprecedented move, as presidential pardons are usually only granted after a conviction. Yedioth Ahronoth , one of Israel's leading daily newspapers, on Monday ran with the headline "The pardon dilemma," while free right-wing daily Israel Hayom acknowledged that "