Israel will not pursue charges against former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu over allegations of fraud and corruption while he was in office, Israeli public television said Tuesday.
The decision by Attorney General Eliyakim Rubinstein is expected to be made public on Thursday, it said.
Channel 2 television also said Rubinstein will not take action against Netanyahu, who is contemplating a return to political life.
"The Netanyahu case is closed. The attorney general decided not to indict the former prime minister due to lack of sufficient evidence," the private television channel said.
"His wife Sara can also breathe the air of freedom, as Rubinstein decided not to indict her for lack of sufficient evidence," it added.
Israeli officials were not immediately available to comment on the reports.
The TV reports said officials in Rubinstein's office were sharply divided over whether to press charges or close the file, but that the attorney general himself was adamant in his position to close the file.
The attorney general's 20-page report will include the opposing opinions of senior judicial officials, Channel 2 said.
"The contradictory view of the state prosecutor (Edna Arbel) who was of the view that Netanyahu should be indicted will be mentioned in Rubinstein's report."
Public television described the divisions in the justice ministry as "the girls against the boys."
Three powerful women in the ministry -- Arbel, head of the state criminal prosecution Nava Naor and Deputy Attorney General Rachel Sukar -- all favored indicting Netanyahu, according to public television.
But Moshe Lador, head of prosecution for the Jerusalem district, and ultimately Rubinstein decided against indictment, it said.
The Netanyahu’s were under investigation for allegedly keeping gifts presented to the former prime minister when he was in office between 1996 and 1999, in violation of Israeli law, and for promising a Jerusalem contractor he would be paid out of the public purse for work done on their private home.
Rubinstein's decision will likely determine the political future of Netanyahu, who is mulling a comeback to capitalize on the woes of the Labor-led government of Prime Minister Ehud Barak.
But the attorney general's report is nonetheless expected to criticize Netanyahu's behavior.
"He will mention that Netanyahu did not act according to what is expected of a public figure, a prime minister," Channel 2 said.
Most political analysts, however, do not believe the criticism will stand in Netanyahu's way if he decides to make a political comeback.
Netanyahu quit as head of the right-wing Likud bloc after his crushing May 1999 election defeat at the hands of Barak, but his possible comeback is causing consternation in the party, now led by the hawkish Ariel Sharon.
Barak, faced with difficulties in the peace process with the Palestinians, could face a call for new elections when parliament returns from its summer recess at the end of October.
Recent opinion polls have indicated that Netanyahu and Barak enjoy a similar amount of support among voters in the race for the prime ministership, but put Sharon's rating much lower -- JERUSALEM (AFP)
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