Disgraced former Israeli president Moshe Katsav defended on Tuesday the plea bargain that saw him escape jail for sex offences in a television interview alongside his wife Gila.
Katsav said he would abide by the terms of the plea bargain which he signed yesterday under which he undertook to plead guilty to harassment and indecent acts, incurring a US$11,500 fine and suspended sentence.
But he maintained his strong denial of the more serious offence of rape which prosecutors had originally said they intended to bring against him.
"I will tell the court what I have to and I will respect the terms of the compromise agreed between my lawyers and the state prosecutor," the 61-year-old Katsav told Israel's privately run Channel Two television.
"More than 90 percent of the allegations levelled against me have proven false and have been dropped, which shows how easy it is to smear a man and his family," he said.
Trying to force a smile, Katsav said he had been "completely humiliated by the false accusations and the terrible press exposes which never let up for one moment for an entire year."
He rejected howls of anger from women's groups and campaigners over the failure of prosecutors to seek a custodial sentence, which saw 20,000 demonstrators take to the streets on Saturday.
"What do these demonstrators know about the investigation or the evidence," the Iranian-born Katsav said.
"We can't accept mob justice, that would be contrary to the democracy of a modern, non-totalitarian state," he said.
The unpopular president leaves office after a seven-year term, about two weeks before Nobel peace laureate Shimon Peres is officially sworn in as his successor.
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