Opposition leaders: Knesset speaker must schedule debate to allow PM to also attend his trial

By Sam Sokol 26 May 2025, 3:04 pm

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Sam Sokol is a former political correspondent at The Times of Israel. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrives at the Tel Aviv District Court before the start of his testimony in the corruption trial against him, May 12, 2025. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)

In a joint message, the leaders of the Knesset opposition appeal to Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana to place this Wednesday’s 40 signatures debate at the end of the plenum schedule “in order to prevent a conflict with the prime minister’s testimony in court.”

“We will not allow the prime minister to evade and use the Knesset debates as a cynical excuse to postpone his trial,” the opposition declares.

A so-called 40-signatures debate is a plenum discussion that the opposition can call once a month and that the prime minister is legally obliged to attend.

Netanyahu had requested to shorten Wednesday’s court hearing because of the debate, a motion opposed by prosecutors.