Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed corruption charges against him in court on Tuesday as ‘ridiculous’, becoming the country’s first sitting prime minister to face a criminal trial.
Israeli media called it a “historic day” as Mr Netanyahu faced charges of bribery, fraud and breach of public trust in three separate cases while running the country at war.
But Mr Netanyahu rejected the allegations, saying: “There is no corruption, there is no fraud. This is just ridiculous.”
During his nearly day-long testimony he also attacked the media, saying that most of the Israeli public was right-wing but the media was “98 percent on the other side”.
The trial has already heard from various witnesses, including a former close aide of Mr Netanyahu who testified against him.
Asked how much the allegations bothered him, he said, “It would be an exaggeration if I told you this is a drop in the ocean.”
“I am busy with matters of world importance.”
In a press conference on Monday, he said that he had been waiting for years to present his side.
“I have been waiting for this day for eight years, eight years with a desire to present the truth, eight years waiting to completely demolish these absurd and baseless allegations against me,” he said. The case was dubbed a “continued witch hunt”. ,
Supporters of the prime minister outside the court chanted “Netanyahu, the people support you”, while protesters chanted “Put Bibi in jail”.
luxury goods
“If at the end of the trial it is decided that Mr. Netanyahu will be sent to jail, he must go to jail,” said Sarah Kritzman, a psychologist who was protesting outside the court.
“I don’t think there should be any argument or any kind of apology just because he’s the prime minister.”
The trial, which has been delayed several times since it began in May 2020, is set to last months, with an appeals process that could prolong cases further.
Mr Netanyahu, who has filed several requests to delay the proceedings on the grounds of the wars in Gaza and Lebanon, has consistently denied any wrongdoing.
In the first case, Mr Netanyahu and his wife Sara are accused of accepting more than $260,000 worth of luxury goods such as cigars, jewelery and champagne from the billionaire in exchange for political favors.
Alleged beneficiaries include Israeli-born Hollywood producer Arnon Milchan and Australian business executive James Packer.
The other two cases allege that Mr. Netanyahu attempted to negotiate more favorable coverage in two Israeli media outlets.
These include alleged efforts by the Prime Minister to reach a deal with Arnon Mozes, publisher of the popular Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth, for better coverage by agreeing to weaken the position of a rival daily newspaper.
The second allegation involves Mr Netanyahu receiving favorable coverage on Walla, a popular news website owned by his close friend Shaul Elovich, in exchange for smoothing the way for a telecom merger sought by Elovich.
Since returning to power in late 2022, Mr. Netanyahu’s coalition government has clashed with the country’s judiciary and law enforcement officials and sparked mass protests by trying to push through legislation that would weaken the courts.
Mr Netanyahu’s critics insist the legal cases will ultimately bring justice to a deeply corrupt politician who will do anything to remain in power.
They also accused him of deliberately prolonging the 14-month conflict in Gaza and Lebanon by avoiding justice.
‘Important milestone’
Yohanan Plesner, president of the Israel Democracy Institute, said the lengthy and divisive trial had now reached “an important milestone.”
Mr Netanyahu not only faced a conflict of interest being both prime minister and a criminal defendant, he said, but the trial was “putting him in direct conflict with key institutions in the state, particularly the Justice Ministry”.
On Monday, about a dozen ministers in Mr. Netanyahu’s coalition sent a letter to Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara requesting that the trial be postponed in view of events in Syria and the overall security situation.
The letter follows similar calls by ministers and a request to the prime minister’s legal team to postpone their testimony due to Israel’s wars and his busy schedule.
The prosecution has argued that it is in the public interest to end the trial as quickly as possible and the court has rejected all such petitions, although it has been willing to start the trial a little later and sometimes reduce the hearing to three days. It has been agreed to do it for two days. Week due to Prime Minister’s work.
Other Israeli leaders have been convicted in criminal cases, including former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who resigned before his trial began, but Mr Netanyahu is the first to take the stance as a sitting prime minister.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
