ReutersThis was a great day for Israel: Benjamin Netanyahu holds the record as the longest-serving prime minister. Now he has become the country's first leader to take the witness stand as a defendant in a criminal case.
Moreover, he did so amid the ongoing war in Gaza and while Israel is carrying out attacks in Syria during a turbulent week in the region.
Netanyahu's lawyer, Amit Haddad, first opened the defense case, portraying the corruption trial as biased and his client the victim of a political witch hunt.
He added that the Public Prosecution “was not investigating a crime, but rather was pursuing a man.”
Netanyahu then sought to downplay the charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust, and to emphasize his political legacy. He strongly denies any wrongdoing.
“I have waited for this moment for eight years to tell the truth,” the veteran leader told the court in Tel Aviv.
“But I am also a prime minister… I am leading the country through a war on seven fronts, and I believe that the two wars can be fought in parallel.”
Over the past four years, prosecutors alleged, Netanyahu traded regulatory favors with media owners in Israel in pursuit of positive press coverage.
They also accuse him of accepting expensive gifts – including cigars and pink champagne – in exchange for promoting the personal interests of a millionaire Hollywood producer.
Netanyahu told the three-judge panel that the Israeli media had launched “ridiculous” attacks on him over the years. He said it was “doubly ridiculous” to suggest that gifts he received from wealthy friends were illicit.
In a long diatribe, the prime minister, who leads the right-wing Likud party, criticized the media in his country for what he described as its left-wing stance.
He accused Israeli journalists of hostility towards him over the years because he did not join efforts to establish a Palestinian state.
“If I wanted good coverage, all I had to do was point toward the two-state solution,” Netanyahu said, standing rather than sitting during his testimony. “If I had moved two steps to the left, I would have done that.” praised.”
The Israeli Prime Minister smiled broadly when he first entered the District Court in Tel Aviv at around 10:00 local time (08:00 GMT) and stayed until the proceedings concluded shortly before 16:00.
The trial was moved from Jerusalem after being postponed for security reasons and was held in a small underground courtroom that also served as a bomb shelter.
A limited number of accredited journalists were able to enter to report, while others had to follow via live broadcast from a room upstairs.
Testifying is expected to take up a significant portion of Netanyahu's time in the coming weeks. Last week, judges ruled that he must appear in court twice this week, then three times a week from now on.
He is expected to move between the court and the war room of the nearby Israeli Ministry of Defense.
Prominent ministers attended the courtroom in the morning to show support for the veteran leader and criticize the legal proceedings.
Likud Transport Minister Miri Regev said: “The court should have insulted the prime minister, insulted the State of Israel and harmed the state’s security.”
“What would have happened if they had delayed his testimony by a few months?”
Outside the court, a line of security guards separated small but noisy crowds of people supporting and protesting Netanyahu.
Eliza Ziv, from Hadera, in northwestern Israel, said that in times of turmoil, no other Israeli leader has come close to the prime minister's abilities.
She added, “The anti-Netanyahu camp's hatred is not only hatred for him, but also for his supporters.”
Meanwhile, standing on the other side of the courtroom entrance, Sifuna told me from Tel Aviv that she considers the veteran leader an “enemy of the people” who prioritizes his political survival above the country’s best interests.
Some relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages still being held by Hamas in Gaza called for more efforts to be made to release their loved ones.
Hadas Calderon's two children were released as part of a temporary truce last year, while her ex-husband, Ofer, remains in captivity.
She told the BBC that the prime minister “cares more about his personal sins than his fellow citizens.”
“He doesn't care about the hostages. It's very sad.”
Before the war in Gaza, Netanyahu's trial sparked deep divisions in Israel and dominated discourse during five consecutive Israeli elections.
The Prime Minister's critics believe that his current government's efforts to limit the powers of the judiciary are linked to his legal problems, although he has denied this.
While the deadly attack by Hamas on October 7, 2023 brought about public unity, that has largely collapsed as the war it sparked continues.
In recent weeks, Israel reached a fragile ceasefire agreement in Lebanon with the armed group Hezbollah.
But at the same time, internal tensions between key government ministers and the judiciary have renewed, with threats to bring back some controversial legal reforms.
This trial is not expected to end for more than a year.
Even if the prime minister is found guilty, he could then appeal to the Supreme Court, meaning these legal proceedings look set to continue to cast a shadow over Israeli politics for the foreseeable future.
