Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu takes stand in his corruption trial

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrives at court as people behind him take photos.

By Tia Goldenberg

Dec. 10, 2024 8:10 AM PT

TEL AVIV — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday rejected corruption allegations against him as he began testifying in his long-running trial, becoming the first sitting Israeli leader to take the stand as a criminal defendant.

The testimony is another low point for Israel’s longest-serving leader, who also faces an international arrest warrant over war crime allegations in Israel’s war against the militant group Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

In his opening testimony in a packed Tel Aviv courtroom, Netanyahu argued that he was a dedicated leader and a defender of Israel’s interests, swatting away the charges against him as a “drop in the sea” compared with the challenges he has faced protecting his country.

But the charges have torn open divisions in Israel and complicated Netanyahu’s legacy, which has also been tainted by the war in Gaza and the growing international isolation Israel faces because of it.

Speaking freely and appearing at ease, Netanyahu said he could balance appearing at his trial with his duties as prime minister at a time when Israel is still fighting a war in Gaza and contending with the fall of President Bashar Assad in neighboring Syria.

“I waited eight years for this moment, to say the truth,” Netanyahu said, standing at a podium, with his son Avner and several members of his Likud Party seated on the courtroom benches. He said his testimony would “poke holes in the absurd accusations.”

Netanyahu will answer during his court appearances to charges of fraud, breach of trust and bribe-taking in three separate cases.

He is accused of accepting tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of cigars and champagne from a billionaire Hollywood producer in exchange for assistance with personal and business interests. He is also accused of promoting advantageous regulations for media moguls in exchange for favorable coverage of himself and his family.

Netanyahu, 75, denies wrongdoing, saying the charges are a witch hunt orchestrated by a hostile media and a biased legal system out to topple his lengthy rule. His testimony caps years of scandals that have swirled around him and his family, who have gained a reputation for enjoying a lavish lifestyle at taxpayers’ expense.

Netanyahu’s testimony is taking place in an underground, fortified courtroom for security reasons. Outside the courthouse, dozens of demonstrators gathered, both supporters of Netanyahu and his opponents. A banner draped outside read “Crime Minister” as each side chanted slogans. Some families of hostages held in Gaza joined the demonstration.

At the start of the prime minister’s testimony, a judge told Netanyahu he had the same privileges as other witnesses and could sit or stand as he chose.

Netanyahu told his version of events and shared personal details about his life that he might hope would shape the judges’ perception of him. He said that at the start of his career in public service, he would lose sleep over media coverage but learned it had no meaningful bearing — in contrast to the prosecution’s attempts to paint him as image-obsessed.

He said he smoked cigars but could hardly finish them because of his workload, and hated champagne.

Ahead of the testimony’s start, his lawyer, Amit Hadad, accused the Israeli justice system of making up the charges in an attempt to ensnare Netanyahu.

“There was a huge effort … to find a few pieces of a puzzle that don’t connect to each other,” Haddad said as Netanyahu sat on a bench behind him. “In court, in the light of day, we see everything falls apart.”

The testimony, set to take place six hours a day, three days a week for several weeks, will take up a significant chunk of Netanyahu’s working hours, prompting critics to ask if he can capably manage a country embroiled in a war on one front, contain the fallout from a second, and keep tabs on other potential regional threats, including from Iran.

His lawyer asked that Netanyahu be allowed to receive notes while testifying to help ensure he could continue running the country, and at some points during the trial, Netanyahu did.

Under Israeli law, indicted prime ministers are not required to step down. But the charges against Netanyahu have cleaved deep divisions in Israel, with protesters demanding he resign and former political allies refusing to serve in government with the Israeli leader, triggering a political crisis that led to five elections in less than four years beginning in 2019.

Netanyahu’s supporters view the charges as the result of bias and overreach by the justice system. The prime minister has rejected calls to step down and has used his position to lash out at law enforcement, the media and the courts.

An Israeli court rejected a request by Netanyahu’s lawyers to reduce the expected number of hours of testimony, as well as several other requests to delay its start, saying the adjustments were necessary because of the prime minister’s busy schedule and the country’s significant challenges. A verdict isn’t expected until 2026 at the earliest and Netanyahu will have the option to appeal to the Supreme Court.

Since the trial began in 2020, the court has heard prosecution witnesses in the three cases, including former close aides of Netanyahu’s who turned state witnesses. The prosecution has tried to portray the prime minister as an image-obsessed leader who broke the law to improve his public reputation.

Netanyahu’s testimony could further tarnish his image at a complicated time. His popular support dropped after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attacks in southern Israel that killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians. About 250 people were taken hostage by the militants.

The public blamed Netanyahu’s leadership for failing to prevent the assault, and if elections were held today, he would struggle to form a government.

Israel is still fighting Hamas in Gaza with no end in sight, despite heavy international pressure to wind down the war, as well as pressure from the families of the remaining hostages held in Gaza and their supporters to bring their loved ones home.

The Israeli leader and his former defense minister also face an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court on charges of war crimes related to the Gaza fighting, which has killed more than 44,500 Palestinians, according to health officials in the territory. The numbers don’t differentiate between civilians and combatants, but officials say more than half the dead are women and children.

Goldenberg writes for the Associated Press.