By Abdelraouf Arnaout and Ahmed Asmar
JERUSALEM (AA) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared on Tuesday for the 15th time before the Tel Aviv District Court to defend himself against corruption charges.
According to Israel’s Army Radio, the court approved Netanyahu’s request to attend two hearing sessions weekly instead of three.
The broadcaster said Netanyahu’s hearing sessions will continue for the upcoming two months, as the court set 24 sessions for him, which means that there are still nine more sessions.
The Israeli premier faces three separate cases of corruption filed in 2019 against him: Case 1,000, Case 2,000, and Case 4,000, which include accusations of bribery, fraud, and breach of trust. Netanyahu, however, denies any wrongdoing, calling the accusations “fake.”
Netanyahu, whose trial began on May 24, 2020, is the first sitting Israeli leader to take the stand as a criminal defendant in the country’s history.
Under Israeli law, he is not required to resign unless convicted by the Supreme Court, a process that could take several months.
Netanyahu also faces charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity, with the International Criminal Court issuing arrest warrants for him and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant in November 2024 over atrocities in Gaza, where nearly 48,400 people, mostly women and children, have been killed since Oct. 7, 2023.