JERUSALEM — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel asked its president Sunday to pardon him in his long-running corruption trial, a request that the president called “extraordinary” and that critics said would run counter to the rule of law.

Netanyahu’s unusual preemptive appeal to President Isaac Herzog, while his trial is still underway, came about two weeks after President Donald Trump sent a letter to Herzog urging him to pardon the Israeli prime minister.

A statement by the Israeli president’s office said the request would have “significant implications,” and that he would “responsibly and sincerely consider” it after seeking expert opinions.

Netanyahu said he believed that canceling his trial would help heal the divisions in Israeli society. But the immediate effect of the re

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