Israel’s Netanyahu takes stand in corruption trial as war in Gaza grinds, neighboring Syria’s dictator falls

Tel Aviv, Israel — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took the stand Tuesday in his long-running trial for alleged corruption, setting off what’s expected to be a weekslong spectacle that will draw unwelcome attention to his legal woes as he faces an international arrest warrant for war crimes and the fighting in Gaza continues. It is the first time a sitting Israeli prime minister takes the stand as a criminal defendant, an embarrassing milestone for a leader who has tried to cultivate an image as a sophisticated and respected statesman.

Upon starting his testimony, Netanyahu said “hello” to the judges. One judge told him he had the same privileges as other witnesses and could sit or stand as he chose.

“I waited eight years for this moment, to say the truth,” Netanyahu said, standing at a podium in a packed Tel Aviv courtroom. He called the charges against him “an ocean of absurdness” and promised his version would cut through the prosecution’s case.

Netanyahu appeared at ease as he began telling his version of events and shared personal details about his life that he might hope would shape the judges’ perception of him. He said he used to 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, but hated champagne. One case revolves around him receiving a “supply line” of cigars and champagne from billionaire associates.

His lawyer asked that he be allowed to receive notes while testifying to help ensure he can continue running the country.

Netanyahu will answer during his court appearances to charges of fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribes 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 assisting him with personal and business interests. He is also accused of promoting advantageous regulation 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.

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, containing the fallout from a second, and keeping tabs on other potential regional threats, including from Iran or the recent fall of longtime dictator Bashar al-Assad in neighboring Syria.

Netanyahu, in his testimony, said he could “find a balance” between both commitments.

Dozens of people gathered outside of the court in Tel Aviv, some protesting against Netanyahu, including family members of hostages held in Gaza, and also a group of his supporters. A banner draped in front of the court read: “Crime Minister.”

Under Israeli law, indicted prime ministers are not required to step down. But the charges against Netanyahu 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. He overcame the political tumult only two years ago by striking an agreement with smaller right-wing parties that had long languished on the edges of Israeli politics, to form the country’s most far-right government ever.

Netanyahu’s supporters view the charges as the result of the justice system’s bias and overreach, while his opponents have accused him of prolonging the raging war in Gaza in a bid to distract from, if not delay his own court proceedings. Netanyahu launched the war on Gaza’s Hamas rulers immediately after they carried out their brutal Oct. 7, 2023 terror attack on Israel, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 others hostage.

Despite the pressure, the polarizing Netanyahu has rejected calls to step down and has used his position as prime minister to lash out at law enforcement, media and courts.

An Israeli court rejected a request by Netanyahu’s lawyers to reduce the expected testimony hours, as well as several other requests to delay its start, which they said 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 at the Supreme Court.

The court has spent months hearing prosecution witnesses in the three cases, including some of Netanyahu’s once closest aides 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 perception.

The most damaging case against Netanyahu involves an influence-peddling scandal in which two of his formerly closest aides have testified against him on suspicions of promoting regulation worth hundreds of millions of dollars to Israel’s Bezeq telecom company. In return, Bezeq’s popular news site, Walla, allegedly provided favorable coverage of Netanyahu and his family.

Netanyahu is also alleged to have offered a newspaper publisher legislation that would weaken his paper’s main rival in return for more favorable coverage.

Moreover, the prime minister is accused of accepting nearly $200,000 in champagne and cigars from Hollywood producer Arnon Milchan and in exchange, he allegedly operated on Milchan’s behalf on U.S. visa matters, tried to legislate a generous tax break for him and sought to promote his interests in the Israeli media market.

Netanyahu’s testimony could further tarnish his image at a complicated time for Israel’s longest-serving leader. His popular support dropped after the Hamas attack in October 2023, with the public blaming his leadership for failing to prevent the assault, and if elections were held today polls suggest he would struggle to form another new 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 hostages still held in Gaza and their supporters to bring their loved ones home.

The Israeli leader, along with his former defense minister, also faces an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court for war crimes charges related to the war in Gaza, which his office has dismissed as “absurd and false actions and charges.”