Former Israeli President Moshe Katsav sentenced to Seven Years Imprisonment

Former Israeli president Moshe Katsav was on 22 March 2011 sentenced to seven years in jail after being convicted for rape.  Katsav had denied charges of raping an aide when he was the Israeli cabinet minister in the late 1990s. He is also charged of molesting and sexually harassing two other women who worked for him during his 2000-2007 term as president.

The judges added that the defendant committed the acts as any man and as any man he must bear the punishment. The judges highlighted that in the face of the grave offences, his clean record and stature were insufficient grounds for granting leniency.

Katsav had joined the Likud Party and at the age of 24 was elected the mayor of Kiryat Mal'akhi. He was subsequently elected as a Member of the Knesset (unicameral legislature of Israel) in 1977.

Moshe Katsav, member of Israel’s Likud party served as the eighth President of Israel. He had defeated Peres and was elected President by the Knesset on 31 July 2000. He was the first president of Israel to be sworn in for a seven year term. Katsav resigned the presidency on 1 July 2007.

On 30 December 2010, Katsav was convicted of two counts of rape, obstruction of justice and other charges. The end of his presidency was marked by controversy.
The Likud party is currently the ruling party in Israel.