Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be scheduled for two corruption trial testimonies a week instead of three, the Jerusalem District Court ruled on Thursday night, in light of the complex political and state security situations that the Israeli leader faced.
Netanyahu’s weekly hearings will be scheduled for Mondays and Wednesdays, with a Tuesday hearing to be allowed to other witnesses in the prime minister’s stead.
The judges acknowledged that as a rule the testimonies of witnesses do not overlap, with a new one only beginning when the preceding has concluded, but argued that the normal constraints did not meet the needs for efficiently and practically arising form the case and its contextual complexity.
Netanyahu had requested a similar schedule in December, but the judges had rejected his request that month — though in practice, since the beginning of the Israeli leader’s testimony, no week has passed with a full three hearings. The testimony process has been rife with cancellations and delays.
The prosecution has objected to the change in the weekly docket because the defense was also seeking more defendant testimony hearings in total, which in the best case scenario would stretch the trial into the end of May.
Fewer hearings than the defense sought
The judges ruled on Monday that Netanyahu would have only 14 more testimony hearings, in contrast to the additional 22-25 sought by the defense. Netanyahu now has 12 more hearings to say his piece.
The prosecution had also contended that Netanyahu had repeatedly stated in the past that he was capable of fulfilling the duties of both prime minister and defendant. His request indicated otherwise, it was argued.