Netanyahu testifies in corruption trial, denies wrongdoing

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took the stand for the first time in his long-running corruption trial, saying he was being hounded for his hawkish security policies.

He took the stand for about four hours on Tuesday and will resume testifying on Wednesday. Twice, his military secretary handed him written messages, the first time requiring a recess and underscoring his having to do double duty as prime minister.

The leader of the right-wing Likud party, Netanyahu, assailed the Israeli media for what he called its leftist stance and accused journalists of having hounded him for years because his policies did not align with a push for a Palestinian state.

"I have been waiting for eight years for this moment to tell the truth," Netanyahu told the three-judge court. "But I am also a prime minister ... I am leading the country through a seven-front war. And I think the two can be done in parallel."

He said his testimony would "poke holes in the absurd accusations."

Netanyahu, 75, was indicted in three cases involving gifts from millionaire friends and for allegedly seeking regulatory favours for media tycoons in return for favourable news coverage. He denies any wrongdoing and has pleaded not guilty.

"Had I wanted good coverage, all I would have had to have done would be to signal toward a two-state solution. ... Had I moved two steps to the left, I would have been hailed," he said.

He stood rather than sat in the witness box while testifying. In lengthy replies, he portrayed himself as a staunch defender of Israel’s security, withstanding pressures from international powers and a hostile domestic media.

Underground courtroom

Netanyahu smiled confidently when he entered the Tel Aviv District Court around 10 am. The trial was moved from Jerusalem for undisclosed security reasons and convened in an underground courtroom.

Before Netanyahu took the stand, his lawyer Amit Hadad laid out for the judges what the defence maintains are fundamental flaws in the investigation.

Prosecutors, Hadad said, "weren't investigating a crime, they were going after a person."

A few dozen protesters gathered outdoors, some of them supporters and others demanding Netanyahu do more to negotiate the release of the hostages.

In the run-up to his court date, Netanyahu revived familiar pre-war rhetoric against law enforcement, describing investigations against him as a witch hunt.

Legal woes

Netanyahu is Israel's first sitting prime minister to be charged with a crime.

Before the war, Netanyahu's legal troubles bitterly divided Israelis and shook Israeli politics through five rounds of elections. His government's bid last year to curb the powers of the judiciary further polarised Israelis.

Critics of this plan said that it undermines the check and balances system, and thousands of Israelis protested every week against it.

In Gaza, Netanyahu is accused of committing war crimes, and the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant against him.

Opposition leaders accuse Netanyahu of escalating Israel's war on Gaza to evade his trial and to achieve a victory that could protect him from conviction and keep him in power.