Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed corruption charges against him as “ridiculous” in court on Tuesday, becoming the country’s first sitting premier to face criminal trial.
Israeli media called it a “historic day” as Netanyahu faced charges of bribery, fraud and breach of public trust in three separate cases while running a country at war.
But Netanyahu rejected the charges, saying: “There’s no corruption, no fraud. It is just ridiculous.”
He also lashed out at the media during almost a full day of testimony, saying most of the Israeli public was right-wing but the media was “98 per cent on the other side”.
The trial has already heard from various witnesses, including former close aides of Netanyahu who testified against him.
Asked how much the charges bothered him, he said: “If I tell you it’s a drop in the ocean that would be an exaggeration”. “I’m busy with matters of world importance.”
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