Olmert after his release from prison
Photo: Avi Moalem
Rivlin eases Olmert's release terms
The president commutes the former PM's punishment to time served, essentially lifting requirements such as bi-monthly visits to police stations and prohibitions on overseas travel.
President Reuven Rivlin commuted former prime minister Ehud Olmert's punishment on Tuesday, in effect easing the terms of his release.
Olmert, who was released from prison on Sunday after having served two thirds of his 27-month corruption sentence and being granted early release, will not have to appear at a police station on a bi-monthly basis and is now eligible to fly abroad.
Rivlin rejected Olmert's request for pardon in March, but said if the parole board decided to grant the former prime minister early release, he would commute Olmert's sentence to time served in light of his past contributions to the State of Israel and its security.
Olmert after his release from prison (Photo: Motti Kimchi)
As part of his rehabilitation, Olmert will attend psychological therapy weekly sessions with a social worker and will also volunteer twice per week with two different charities. He will also meet two other release terms that remain confidential.
If Olmert commits a felony or a crime before the end of the prison term he was sentenced to, the lifted terms would snap back into place.
Olmert was convicted in 2014 in a wide-ranging case that accused him of accepting bribes to promote a real-estate project years in Jerusalem and obstructing justice. The charges pertained to a period when he was mayor of Jerusalem and trade minister before he became premier in 2006.
He was originally sentenced to six years but he waged a relentless legal battle in his quest to reduce what some considered a harsh punishment.
Efforts paid off in December 2015 when the sentence was reduced to 18 months, but Olmert was then hit with an additional 8 months in September 2016 after the Supreme Court threw out his appeal.
