Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu received good news on Monday: the confessional phase of his trial will not begin until after the March 23 Israeli elections.
Why does it matter: Netanyahu faces charges of bribery, breach of trust and fraud in connection with a series of corruption scandals. If the testimony of witnesses and the presentation of evidence began before the election, it could have dominated the news cycle and affected their hopes of winning the majority.
- Instead, they will begin on April 5 with three hearings a week, with judges announcing the trial on Monday.
- The bad news for Netanyahu is that the hearings will align with the post-election process of trying to form a government.
- Between the lines: A new right-wing majority would probably pass laws trying to end Netanyahu’s trial.
Flashback: At the court hearing two weeks ago, in which Netanyahu pleaded not guilty, his lawyers demanded that the testimony phase be postponed for another three to four months. They cited procedural reasons and did not mention the elections.
- But just hours after Netanyahu left the courtroom, he denounced the allegations and argued for a postponement until after the election and said that the start of the hearing before March 23 “would seem like blatant interference in the election.”
News management: Judges rejected Netanyahu’s demands that two of the charges against him be dropped on procedural grounds and that some evidence be banned because they were collected illegally. They criticized the attorney general for authorizing the investigation into Netanyahu.