Israeli PM assails media as he testifies in his graft trial

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took the witness stand for the first time on Dec 10 in his long-running corruption trial, saying he was being hounded for his hawkish security policies.

TEL AVIV -

Mr Netanyahu, 75, is Israel's first sitting prime minister to be charged with a crime. He is testifying while Israel is engaged in a war in Gaza and facing possible new threats posed by regional turmoil, including in Syria.

Judges last week ruled that Mr Netanyahu, indicted in 2019, must testify three times a week, forcing him to shuttle between the courtroom and the war room at the Defence Ministry, minutes away from the courthouse.

The leader of the right-wing Likud party, Mr Netanyahu, assailed the Israeli media for 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 to tell the truth," Mr 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."