Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to testify in court on Tuesday, facing charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust in three separate cases
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to testify in court on Tuesday, facing charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust in three separate cases.
Netanyahu has repeatedly requested to delay his testimony because of the conflicts roiling the Middle East but was mostly denied by the courts. The long-running trial comes as Netanyahu is already facing accusations by critics in Israel of dragging out the war in Gaza and putting off a cease-fire deal that could release some 100 hostages who remain in the territory after 14 months of war triggered by the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023.
Israel’s offensive has killed over 44,500 Palestinians in the Gaza since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, according to local health authorities. They say most of the dead are women and children but do not distinguish between fighters and civilians. The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting around 250, including older adults and children.
Meanwhile, U.S. prosecutors have accused two senior Syrian officials of overseeing a notorious prison that tortured peaceful protesters and other political prisoners, including a 26-year-old American woman who was later believed to have been executed.
The indictment was unsealed Monday, two days after a shock rebel offensive overthrew Syrian President Bashar Assad. The U.S., U.N. and others accuse him of widespread human rights abuses in a 13-year battle to crush opposition forces seeking his removal from power.
Assad fled to Russia, where he received asylum from his longtime ally.
