ANKARA

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared before the Tel Aviv District Court on Wednesday for a second session of cross-examination in his criminal trial on corruption charges.

The trial session focuses on Case 1000, in which the Israeli premier is accused of fraud and breach of trust for accepting luxury gifts worth hundreds of thousands of shekels from Hollywood mogul Arnon Milchan and Australian billionaire James Packer, and doing various favors in return.

According to the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper, the session is held amid a crisis in Netanyahu’s coalition as ultra-Orthodox parties have threatened to undermine the government over delays in passing legislation exempting Haredi Jews from mandatory military service.

On Tuesday, Netanyahu was cross-examined by state prosecutors for the first time in his criminal trial.

During the session, Netanyahu used the lack of memory in his responses to questions by the prosecution, saying that he “didn’t remember.”

Challenging Netanyahu’s claim, Prosecutor Yehonatan Tadmor said that the Israeli premier had a “phenomenal” memory, citing Netanyahu’s former senior aide Nir Hefetz.

Tadmor said that the prime minister used the phrase that he “doesn’t remember” 1,778 times during police questioning regarding cases 1000 and 2000, and that his use of the sentence increased as the interrogation sessions continued.

Israeli media called Netanyahu’s cross-examination a “dramatic shift,” as it was the first time that the Israeli premier appeared before representatives of the public prosecution for Case 1,000.

Netanyahu faces three separate cases of corruption filed in 2019 against him: Case 1,000, Case 2,000, and Case 4,000, which include accusations of bribery, fraud, and breach of trust. He denies any wrongdoing, calling the accusations “fake.”

Netanyahu, whose trial began on May 24, 2020, is the first sitting Israeli leader to take the stand as a criminal defendant in the country’s history.

Under Israeli law, he is not required to resign unless convicted by the Supreme Court, a process that could take several months.

Netanyahu also faces charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity, with the International Criminal Court issuing arrest warrants for him and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant in November 2024 over atrocities in Gaza, where over 54,500 people, mostly women and children, have been killed since Oct. 7, 2023.