NEW YORK (FOX 5 NY) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was indicted on corruption charges Thursday, according to Iraseli media.
Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit announced the charges including one count of bribery and two counts of fraud and breach of trust related to three different cases, pending a final hearing.
In the most serious allegations, Netanyahu is accused of forging a 'bribe-based' relationship with Shaul Elovitch of Israeli telecommunications giant Bezeq.
Netanyahu allegedly promoted regulatory changes worth hundreds of millions of dollars to Bezeq in return for positive press coverage in Bezeq's popular subsidiary news site Walla.
In the fraud and breach of trust cases, Netanyahu allegedly accepted gifts from billionaire friends and offered that he advantageous legislation for a major newspaper in return for favorable coverage.
In June, Israeli prosecutors charged Sara Netanyahu, the prime minister's wife, with a series of crimes including fraud and breach of trust.
Netanyahu is running for re-election. Election Day is April 9.
It's the first time in Israel's history that a sitting prime minister has been charged with a crime.
Netanyahu denies any wrongdoing. He called a press conference for Thursday evening.
With the Associated Press