Netanyahu takes the stand for second day of testimony in his trial

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu takes the witness stand for the second day of his testimony in his criminal trial on corruption charges, during which his defense attorney Amit Hadad will continue to question the prime minister about the allegations against him.

Fewer Likud MKs have come to support the prime minister in court today. There are no demonstrations outside the Tel Aviv District Court where Netanyahu’s testimony is being heard, and the media presence is noticeably smaller.

On Tuesday, Hadad sought to undermine key aspects of Case 4000, in which Netanyahu is accused of making regulatory decisions that greatly benefited former Bezeq owner Shaul Elovitch financially, in return for positive press coverage on the Walla news website owned by Elovitch.

Hadad and Netanyahu sought to demonstrate that Walla’s coverage did not become especially favorable after an alleged agreement was reached between the two and that Netanyahu received nothing and can therefore not be found guilty of taking a bribe, as the indictment alleges.

The prosecution will likely argue, when it holds its cross-examination in several weeks, that it does not need to prove Walla totally changed its coverage, but rather that Netanyahu got some positive coverage due to special treatment from Elovitch as a result of the regulatory benefits Netanyahu advanced for him.

The defense questioning is expected to last for many sessions before cross-examination can begin.