Witness hearings in Netanyahu case set for Jan. 2021, to be held 3 times weekly : Reports
Tel Aviv/Sputnik: Witness hearings in the court case against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will take place in January 2021 and will be held three times a week, a Jerusalem court judge ruled on Sunday, according to media reports.
Netanyahu, Israel's longest-serving prime minister, is charged with bribery, fraud and breach of trust in three separate cases. He has denied the charges.
The prime minister’s side sought a delay because of the coronavirus pandemic, arguing that questioning of witnesses with face masks would hamper the work of attorneys, The Times of Israel newspaper reported.
Sunday saw the technical phase of the trial begin, where the sides were supposed to agree a time table and other details. Netanyahu’s team sent lawyer Yossi Segev who was recently hired.
Netanyahu himself was absent from the courthouse today.
Case 1,000 alleges that the politician and his wife wrongfully received valuable presents, including expensive cigars and bottles of champagne, from two businessmen — Australian billionaire James Packer and Israeli Hollywood film producer Arnon Milchan. Prosecutors also accuse Netanyahu of granting favors to Milchan.
Case 2,000 deals with meetings between Netanyahu and Arnon Mozes, the publisher of Israel's largest daily newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth, during which they discussed passing legislation imposing restrictions on the competing Israel Hayom newspaper in exchange for more favorable coverage of the politician in Mozes' newspaper. Even though the legislation has not been passed, the discovery and release of recordings of these meetings have seen Mozes charged with attempted bribery, while Netanyahu is accused of fraud and breach of trust.
Case 4,000 centers on the allegation of Netanyahu's quid pro quo with Shaul Elovitch, the controlling stakeholder in the Bezeq telecom giant, which owns the Walla news website. Prosecutors believe that Elovitch pressured the news outlet's executives to ensure coverage favorable for Netanyahu. The politician is said to have taken care of the tycoon's business interests in return.
The court proceedings are expected to take years. If convicted, the 70-year-old politician may face up to 10 years in prison for bribery and up to three years for fraud and breach of trust.
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