The “immediate” cancellation of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s corruption trial was claimed yesterday (25.06.2025) by US President Donald Trumpbut a move that has caused reactions to Israel.
“Such a witch hunt, at the expense of a man who gave so much, is inconceivable to me. It is worth something better than that, and the state of Israel as well. Bibi Netanyahu’s trial is to be canceled immediately“, Said Trump added:” Otherwise it must be “given” the “great hero who did so much for the state of Israel.”
Reacting today, opposition leader Yair Lapid of the Central Party Yesh Atid defended the independence of Israeli courts while stressing that the US president should not be “mixed” in the internal affairs of the Jewish state.
“We are grateful to President Trump, but (…) the president should not interfere with an independent country,” he said in an interview with the Israeli news website.
Lapid was drawn up with a position of one of the prominent far -right officials of the Netanyahu government coalition, who asked Trump to stay away from the trial.
“It is not the role of the President of the United States to intervene in the judicial proceedings of the State of Israel,” said Simsa Rothman, of the religious Zionist party and chairman of the Knesset Legal Committee, posting on X.
At the same time, Rothman argued that “the handling of cases by Netanyahu turns the image of the state of Israel from regional and global force into banana.”
Postponement asked Netanyahu
At the same time, Netanyahu today asked to postpone the hearing meetings in his trial for corruption Due to the “regional and global developments”, after the 12 -day crisis with Iran and while the battles in the Gaza Strip continue.
“We respect the court with respect to order the annulment of the hearing in which the prime minister was due to file within the next two weeks,” Netanyahu’s lawyer writes in a request to the court.
He added that the Israeli prime minister “is obliged to devote all his time and energy to manage great importance, national, diplomatic and security.”
Trump’s intervention
The claim Trump to cancel the trial of Netanyahu’s support Among other things of the Minister of National Security Ithamar Ben-GvirIsraeli far -right leader, and the Foreign Minister Gideon Saar. Ben-Gvir ruled the current trial politically motivated.
Saar, for his part, considered that it was “opposed to the fundamental sense of justice” to continue the trial in times of war. Netanyahu is facing trial for corruption, fraud and abuse of trust.
His trial began in May 2020. It was interrupted by the war in the Gaza Strip and again because of the war with Hezbollah in Lebanon.
His defense has repeatedly submitted postponement applications, citing hostilities, triggered by the raid of the Palestinian Islamist Movement in Southern Israel on October 7, 2023. Netanyahu denies any delinquency.