Significant progress was made in talks between Benjamin Netanyahu and Attorney General Avichai Mendelblit on a potential plea deal in the former prime minister's criminal trial, media outlets reported over the weekend.

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Netanyahu, who is is on trial in three separate graft cases, is expected to sign in the next few days.

Although an official decision has not yet been made, based on the interviews given by Netanyahu's associates, the affair is likely to be put to an end before Mendelblit retires on Feb. 1.

Both parties have agreed to drop the fraud and breach of trust of Case 2000 and the bribery charges from Case 4000. Netanyahu will plead guilty to two remaining offenses – fraud and breach of trust in Case 4000 and Case 1000. As per the agreement, the former premier will be sentenced to up to 3 months of community service, with no prison time.

Mandelblit also consulted with former Supreme Court president Aharon Barak, who encouraged him to pursue the plea deal, but only if Netanyahu agrees that his actions will be designated as moral turpitude, barring him from public service for seven years. As such, he will only remain an MK until his sentence.

Last week, coalition members expressed worry that the government might not be able to stay together if such a deal is signed.

The coalition fears that if Netanyahu moves to the Right, the government would have no interest in keeping up the current partnership with Meretz, Labor, and Ra'am, and will attempt to form a coalition based on right-wing parties.

"Netanyahu is the glue holding this government together," one coalition official said Thursday. "The New Hope people who said 'Anyone but Bibi' will have a hard time explaining why, if Netanyahu leaves the game, they continue to sit with the Left. The pressure on the Yamina members is very heavy, too.

"It's not an exaggeration to say that if Netanyahu leaves, the government could fall apart shortly thereafter. The moment Netanyahu leaves, it's a new game. Everything will be open. Each political player will have a lot of possibilities," the official said.

If Netanyahu leaves, the Likud has a clear path ahead of it. According to the party constitution, the Likud will have 21 days to elect a temporary leader. But the party will likely do so in much less time, possibly as few as 10 days. Once a temporary party leader has been chosen, the party has 90 days to hold a primary election. During those 90 days, the temporary leader could negotiate an alternative government.

Likud MK Israel Katz said over the weekend, "If a plea deal is signed, it will be a sad moment for me personally. After Netanyahu, I will run for the Likud presidency. I assume I will be elected for Likud leadership and try to replace the current government."

Another Likud MK, Miri Regev, argued against the plea deal, claiming the courts failed to "uphold justice and fairness."

"This trial should continue because it is not Netanyahu who is on trial, but the attorney general and his associates. I believe in Netanyahu's innocence. I would want this case to continue … but I will respect any decision Netanyahu makes. It is a personal and private matter," she said.

Finance Minister Avigdor Lieberman told Channel 12 News last week, "Netanyahu understands that he has lost and therefore hurries to sign a deal."

With regard to Likud primaries, he said the process would be "lengthy. Several months. I hope this government, which is a good government, will continue to operate."

Some Likud lawmakers argued that even if it does take some time to elect a new leader, the current government would not be able to make it to the rotation in any case.

Meanwhile, 2000 people gathered outside Mendelblit's home in Petach Tikva on Saturday, protesting against the potential plea deal.

"This is a filthy deal because it undermines public faith in the legal system," Gonen Ben Itzhak, a leading figure in the protests against Netanyahu, said. "The head of the prosecution cannot give Netanyahu such a gift … We will argue against it vis-à-vis the Supreme Court [of Justice, if necessary]."

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The decision comes in response to a petition by The Movement for Quality Government in Israel, which asked the court to force Nitzan to make public the summary of his legal opinion regarding cases 1,000 and 2,000 because of supposed differences between him and Mendelblit over the charges Netanyahu should face in court.

Case 1,000 centers on gifts Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, allegedly received from billionaire businessmen Arnon Milchan and James Packer.

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Case 2,000 focuses on an illicit deal Netanyahu allegedly tried to strike with Yedioth Ahronoth publisher Arnon Mozes under which the daily would soften its aggressive anti-Netanyahu stance in return for the prime minister using his influence to curtail the activities of Israel Hayom, Yedioth's chief rival.

Netanyahu has also been embroiled in Case 4,000, in which he is suspected of having offered Shaul Elovitch, the controlling shareholder in the Bezeq communications giant, regulatory benefits supposedly worth hundreds of millions of shekels in exchange for favorable coverage of Netanyahu and his family on the Bezeq-owned Walla news website.

Mendelblit plans to indict Netanyahu on fraud and breach of trust in all three cases, as well as on one count of accepting a bribe in Case 4,000.

In the court ruling on Thursday, the justices said that there were "no grounds to second guess Mendelblit's decision [on the scope of the charges]."

The petitioners slammed the ruling saying that "Supreme Court precedents have made it clear that whenever there are substantial disagreements among investigators, then legal opinions should be made public, as was the case in Netanyahu's corruption probes in the 1990s."

The organization said releasing the information would allow the public to fully understand what guided the attorney general in his decisions regarding corruption cases of public officials.

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"This is the definition of injustice," Netanyahu said after Mendelblit informed his lawyers that he had rejected his request to hold the hearing only after he swears in a new government in late 2019.

Several months ago Mendelblit released a report laying out the charges against Netanyahu in three corruption cases, saying he would make a final decision on an indictment after Netanyahu appeared for a hearing.

The charges include allegations that he accepted gifts from billionaire friends and promoted beneficial regulations for a telecom magnate in exchange for positive coverage on a news site.

Netanyahu's lawyers and Mendelblit set the hearing for October, but last week the Knesset dissolved unexpectedly after the collapse of coalition talks and a new election was called for Sept. 17, less than six months after Israelis went to the polls and gave Netanyahu and his right-wing allies a clear mandate to lead the country again.

"Because of the unprecedented situation in which a new election is being imposed on us, law enforcement should show flexibility on the date of the hearing," Netanyahu said, citing other cases in which subjects of corruption investigations were given extra time in light of changing circumstances.

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The Justice Ministry has previously said the hearing would take place by July 10, but Mendelblit's office said on Wednesday that the much-anticipated hearing would at the beginning of October. Netanyahu's lawyers had reportedly asked for at least a year.

Several months ago Mendelblit released a report laying out the charges against Netanyahu in three corruption cases, saying he would make a final decision on an indictment after Netanyahu appeared for a hearing.

The charges include allegations that he accepted gifts from billionaire friends and promoted beneficial regulations for a telecom magnate in exchange for positive coverage on a news site.

The recently reelected Netanyahu has denied any wrongdoing and has called the charges the product of a media-orchestrated witch hunt to depose him.

The criminal investigations facing Netanyahu, known as Case ‎‎1,000, Case 2,000 and Case 4,000, have clouded his premiership and were a central issue during the recent election.

Case 1,000 centers on expensive gifts Netanyahu and his wife, ‎Sara, allegedly received from Hollywood producer ‎Arnon Milchan and Australian tycoon James Packer.

Case 2,000 focuses on an alleged deal between Netanyahu and Yedioth Ahronoth publisher Arnon Mozes in which Yedioth would soften its aggressive ‎anti-Netanyahu tone in return for the prime ‎minister acting to curtail Yedioth rival Israel ‎Hayom's activities to benefit ‎Yedioth financially.‎

Case 4,000 revolves around allegations of a deal in which Shaul ‎Elovitch, the controlling shareholder of Israeli telecom corporation Bezeq, ensured positive coverage for Netanyahu in the Bezeq-owned Walla news website in exchange for the prime minister ‎promoting government regulations worth hundreds of ‎millions of dollars to the company.‎

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