Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu appeared in Tel Aviv District Court on Wednesday morning for the 17th day of his testimony in Case 4000. During the proceedings, he once again lashed out at the Attorney General’s Office, accusing them of presenting a distorted version of reality.
At one point in the hearing, Netanyahu reacted with frustration to a judge’s remark regarding the repetitive nature of the accusations against him. “For ten years I’ve been dragged through a bribery case. People are standing on the sides of the roads and shouting ‘Bribery, fraud and breach of trust,'” he declared. He emphasized that the case against him was crumbling, stating, “A total of 315 sections are falling apart one after the other.”
Expressing his outrage over the ordeal, Netanyahu pounded on the table and said, “An entire country has put me and my family through hell and I have come to break it down and show that this is absurd. I have the right to defend myself.” His outburst prompted Judge Rivka Friedman-Feldman to intervene, telling him, “It is possible to move forward. Mr. Netanyahu, lower your voice.”
In response, Netanyahu defended his passionate reaction. “I’m usually restrained, but this cannot happen. They have made our lives miserable. I am fulfilling my duty as prime minister even at this time. I’m coming here twice a week,” he stated. He accused investigators and prosecutors of failing to question him about key points in the case, adding, “That means that there are many questionable issues in this indictment. Everything is based on a lie; there is malicious negligence on the part of the police and the Attorney General’s Office.”
Earlier in the hearing, Netanyahu’s attorney, Amit Hadad, introduced an investigative report regarding a request to publish an article about Netanyahu’s visit to the grave of his late brother, Yoni Netanyahu, on the eve of Memorial Day.
“How involved were you?” Hadad asked. Netanyahu answered, “I was not involved. This was not a demand. It was on the verge of begging.” He elaborated, “Every year I visit my brother’s grave on the eve of Memorial Day, due to security constraints. This is a personal visit.”
Hadad then displayed a Walla news article about the visit and asked Netanyahu if he found anything unusual about it. “No,” Netanyahu replied. When asked if Walla’s coverage differed from that of other news outlets, Netanyahu dismissed the notion that it constituted bribery. “Is it bribery? There is no difference. It was sent to all media outlets as a press release. There’s nothing unusual here other than the lack of shame in bringing it up in the indictment.” He continued, directing his frustration toward the court: “Your Honor, after ten years, I am allowed to say this – how did they put this in the indictment? The indictment is working in a different direction here, not on me.”
As the hearing proceeded, Hadad presented a series of reports published on the Walla website and questioned Netanyahu about whether he was aware of any connection between those publications and Bezeq’s business dealings. “I had no idea,” Netanyahu asserted. “It interests me if they say something good about me, so I should approach them in regulations? I had no idea.”
Later, Netanyahu addressed another article published by Walla, which alleged that he maintained a foreign bank account. “There was no tax haven,” he stated firmly. “I also didn’t ask them to take down the article and they didn’t report it to me.” When asked if such reports influenced his regulatory decisions, he responded unequivocally: “No, they have no idea what’s going on.”
Netanyahu also brought up a Walla report about Yair Lapid’s son attending a cabinet meeting. “The elder Lapid is a political rival,” he said. “It’s very unusual. It is unusual to accept this, and Walla did a PR story and did not address this unusual situation. That says it all.” When asked how the situation would have been handled had it involved his own son, he replied, “If it had been me, there would have been a great brouhaha here.”
It is worth noting that in June 2023, the judges of the Yerushalayim District Court recommended that the prosecution drop the bribery charge in Case 4000 against Netanyahu due to insufficient evidence that the crime had been committed. However, the Attorney General’s office declined to comply with the recommendation.
{Matzav.com Israel}

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