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The criminal trial of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to resume on Sunday after weeks of suspension due to emergency restrictions imposed on the judiciary amid the ongoing conflict with Iran, The Jerusalem Post reported.
According to The Jerusalem Post, citing an official court notice, the hearing will take place at 9:30 am (local time) at the Jerusalem District Court and will involve testimony from a defence witness. The notice further stated that with the lifting of emergency measures, Israel's judicial system is returning to normal functioning. As per the standard schedule, hearings will be held in Jerusalem on Sundays, while sessions from Monday to Wednesday will take place at the Tel Aviv District Court. The suspension of proceedings was part of broader restrictions introduced by Israel's Justice Ministry after the outbreak of war on February 28. During this period, courts operated under a "special emergency" format, limiting activity to urgent cases. The arrangement had been extended multiple times, with the latest directive in effect until Thursday, The Jerusalem Post reported. With the emergency framework now lifted, Netanyahu's trial--along with other non-urgent criminal and civil cases--is returning to the regular court calendar. Substantively, the case will resume from the ongoing cross-examination phase in the long-running corruption trial involving Cases 1000, 2000, and 4000, as reported by The Jerusalem Post. Netanyahu, who was indicted in 2019, has denied all charges and pleaded not guilty. He began testifying in December 2024, becoming the first sitting Israeli Prime Minister to take the stand as a criminal defendant. Prosecutors commenced cross-examination in June 2025 after months of direct examination by the defence. Prior to the interruption, proceedings were largely focused on Case 4000, also known as the Bezeq-Walla affair, which is considered the most serious of the three cases, as it includes allegations of bribery, The Jerusalem Post reported. During the last hearings before the pause, prosecutors questioned Netanyahu over issues related to the Bezeq- Yes, merger; his ties with businessman Shaul Elovitch; and an alleged "directive meeting" with former Israeli Communications Ministry director-general Shlomo Filber--an allegation Netanyahu has denied, The Jerusalem Post reported. The resumption of hearings marks a continuation of the trial rather than the beginning of a new phase, bringing back into focus one of Israel's most high-profile legal proceedings, which has faced repeated delays due to political developments and ongoing conflicts. (ANI)
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