Khaberni - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has requested from the Israeli Central Court to cancel his testimony before the court on Wednesday on charges of corruption.
The court will reconvene after the end of the Jewish festival of Sukkot on Tuesday.
Since Netanyahu appears before the court three days a week, which are Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, he is scheduled to appear in court on Wednesday.
However, his defense team informed the court today, Sunday, of his request to cancel his appearance on Wednesday due to being busy with an "urgent diplomatic visit to the President of Cyprus".
He did not clarify the reason for the urgency of this visit but stated that it would start at 11:00 AM on Wednesday, Palestine time.
The court and the public prosecution must approve this request.
The defense team also requested allowing Netanyahu to testify only on Monday and Tuesday in his trial next week.
They also requested to shorten the testimony day on the upcoming Monday due to the opening of the winter session of the Knesset, and to end the discussion at 1:30 PM.
Netanyahu, who is the first sitting Israeli Prime Minister to be tried, faces charges of "bribery, fraud, and breach of trust" in a trial that has been ongoing for over three years.
In the past, Netanyahu always denied all the allegations against him, saying there is a "politically motivated witch-hunt" against him.
The indictment against Netanyahu is linked to breach of trust in cases 1000 and 2000 and bribery in case 4000.
In case 4000, Netanyahu is accused of accepting bribes in the form of favorable media coverage for him and his family on the Israeli news site "Walla" in exchange for providing various benefits contrary to law to the site's owner and the telecommunications company "Bezeq's" Shaul Elovitch.
Netanyahu also faces charges of fraud and credit misusage by receiving expensive gifts from wealthy individuals, detailed in case 1000.
In case 2000, the same charges apply as the prosecution claims he was involved in credit misuse through an attempt to secure a deal with the publisher of the newspaper "Yedioth Ahronoth" for favorable news coverage in exchange for restricting "Israel Today" newspaper.
Despite all this, the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is not required to resign until he is finally convicted by the court.
We have won, but the battle is not over yet
Meanwhile, Netanyahu considered that Israel has won all the wars it had fought, but the battle is not over yet.
He said in a speech to the Israeli people: "This is an emotional evening, an evening of tears, an evening of joy. Because tomorrow, the children will return to their borders. This is a historic event that mixes sadness over the release of murderers and joy over the return of the hostages."
He called for unity among Israelis, saying: "I know there are many differences among us. But on this day, and I hope also in the coming period, we have every reason to overlook them."
He noted that "wherever we fought, we won."
But he added without elaboration: "At the same time, I must tell you: the battle is not over yet. There are still significant security challenges waiting for us. "
He continued: "Some of our enemies are trying to rebuild themselves to attack us again. And as we say: 'We move forward'."
However, he continued: "There are also great opportunities that we have not known before, specifically thanks to the victories we achieved. I am confident that with our joint efforts we will overcome the challenges and make the most of the opportunities."
Netanyahu pointed out that "tomorrow marks the beginning of a new path. A path of building, a path of healing, and I hope, a path of unifying hearts. Together we will continue to strengthen our country. Together we will continue to win, (...) together we will ensure the eternalness of Israel."
