Olmert to be first leader behind bars

(China Daily)      Updated : 2015-12-31

Former prime minister Ehud Olmert, who claimed to be on the cusp of a historic peace deal with the State of Palestine just a few years ago, now is set to become the first Israeli leader to go to prison after the Supreme Court upheld a bribery conviction against him on Tuesday. In some ways, Tuesday's decision was a success for Olmert. The five-judge panel dismissed the most serious bribery charge against him and reduced his original prison sentence from six years down to 18 months. He was set to report to prison on Feb 15.