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 the leader faces.
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 one has concluded, but argued that the normal constraints did not meet the practical needs arising from the case and its contextual complexity.
Netanyahu had requested a similar schedule in December, but the judges had rejected his request – though in practice, since the beginning of his 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 to 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 to 25 sought by the defense. Netanyahu now has 12 more hearings to defend himself.
The prosecution had also contended that the prime minister had repeatedly stated in the past that he was capable of fulfilling the duties of both prime minister and defendant but his request indicated otherwise, it was argued.