On Monday April 5, the whole country had its eyes on Jerusalem. On television, the screens were split in two, to broadcast live images of the great political spectacle.
On the one hand, the court in occupied East Jerusalem, the theater in which the judicial future of Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu should be played out in the coming months, if not the next few years. Yesterday, in this drab building in front of which his supporters and opponents were shouting, the hearings of witnesses in his trial for corruption, fraud and breach of trust began.
On the other, Beit HaNassi, the house of the presidency, in West Jerusalem, where, in the coming weeks, the political future of the most enduring of the Israeli prime ministers – more than fifteen years at the head of a government. President Réouven Rivlin held consultations there with the various representatives of the parties elected during the legislative elections of March 23, before entrusting one of them with the task of forming a majority.
In court, prosecutor Liat Ben-Ari quickly set the scene at the start of the hearing: “The case brought before your honorable court today is an important and serious matter of corruption. “ The magistrate, who was placed under protection after being the target of threats, accuses Mr. Netanyahu of having “Used the powers conferred by his office to advance his own personal interests”.
The interested party listens, arms crossed, and slips away just after his intervention; he reappears a few hours later to ensure his defense, but this time on television. Alone on stage, he actually addresses his base, totally acquired and who feasts on his attacks on the judicial institution. “This is what the illegitimate use of power looks like, he hammered, in a refrain that has become familiar since the announcement of his indictment in November 2019, Here’s how to topple a strong right-wing prime minister. This is what a coup attempt looks like. “
Three cases
In the coming weeks, the Netanyahu trial, repeatedly delayed due to coronavirus and in order not to disrupt the legislative elections of March 23, will intensify. At the rate of three hearings per week which the Prime Minister is not required to attend, the judges will listen to the testimonies of hundreds of witnesses in three cases: the file 1000, which concerns gifts which Mr. Netanyahu and his family would have received from two billionaires in exchange for favors; the 2000 case in which the judges are interested in an attempted agreement between the owner of the daily Yediot Aharonot and the Prime Minister on more favorable coverage in exchange for the weakening of a free competitor; and case 4000, at the heart of Monday’s hearing.
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