Prosecution statement, first witness at Netanyahu trial

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s trial for corruption went into full gear at the Jerusalem District Court6 on Monday with the prosecution’s opening statement, followed by the first witness in the bribes case brought against him. Ilan Yeshua, CEO of the Wallah news website, was called to testify in the case (File 4000) in which the prime minister is accused of bribery by illegally offering benefits to the site’s proprietor Shaul Elovitch, head of the Bezeq Corp., in return for favorable press coverage. In lesser charges, Netanyahu is accused of fraud and breach of trust. The prime minister attended the opening session along with co-defendants Shaul and Iris Elovitch and Yediot Aharonot editor Noah Mozes. Court hearings are scheduled for three times a week. The testimony and cross-questioning of prosecution and defense witnesses are expected to consume some three years up to a decision. Netanyahu has consistently claimed that the cases against him were trumped up and he is innocent of any wrongdoing.