One of his lawyers, Zion Amir, told Israel Radio, “Regarding the sentence, I have no doubt that this was not the last word.” Mr. Amir said he was not surprised by the sentence in light of the “harsh” verdict against Mr. Katsav. Many Israeli legal experts said the punishment was fitting given both the gravity of Mr. Katsav’s crimes and the added weight of his public standing.

Rape verdicts in Israel usually carry a minimum sentence of 4 years and a maximum of 16. The judges said in their ruling that the fact that Mr. Katsav had been president was no reason for leniency. On the contrary, they said, he had abused his authority and standing in order to carry out his crimes.

They wrote that Mr. Katsav’s acts had “brought disgrace on the symbol of the institution of the presidency.” In addition to the seven-year sentence, Mr. Katsav received a two-year suspended sentence and was ordered to pay compensation to two of his victims. No television cameras or radio microphones were allowed in the courtroom during the proceedings and most of the trial took place behind closed doors.

Mr. Katsav had contended that the rape accusation was a plot by the former Tourism Ministry employee, who he said was seeking revenge after she was fired. But the judges who convicted him cited evidence that contradicted Mr. Katsav’s testimony, which they said they found “false.”

Expressing a minority opinion, Yehudit Shevach, one of the panel of three judges who handed down the sentence, said that four years of imprisonment and more compensation would have been sufficient punishment. She cited what she called the “trial by media” and remarks by the attorney general at the time, who described Mr. Katsav’s behavior as that of a “serial sex offender” even before he was formally charged. Mr. Katsav’s lawyers also argued that he had been demonized and condemned by the news media and by leaks and statements from public figures before the trial started.

The other two judges, George Kara and Miriam Sokolov, argued that the unprecedented publicity, some legitimate and some not, was a result of Mr. Katsav’s high standing.