Full Breakdown
Court Limits Former Attorney-General’s Testimony in Netanyahu Corruption Trial
By Drooid · · How we work
In this breakdown
01
Core Event
On a Wednesday hearing, a three-judge panel of the Jerusalem District Court voted 2-1 to confine former attorney-general Avichai Mandelblit’s testimony to the specific approvals he gave for the investigations into Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The majority ruled that further questioning about broader police and prosecutorial conduct would exceed the scope of his permitted testimony. Defense counsel Amit Hadad subsequently asked for an adjournment to revise his line of questioning; the prosecution did not object and the session concluded after roughly two hours.
02
Background & Context
Netanyahu’s trial, which began in May 2020, comprises three separate cases: Case 1000 (alleged gifts from Arnon Milchan and James Packer), Case 2000 (media-coverage negotiations with publisher Arnon Mozes), and Case 4000 (regulatory favors for Bezeq’s shareholder Shaul Elovitch in exchange for favorable coverage on Walla). He faces fraud and breach-of-trust charges in all three, and a bribery charge in Case 4000. Mandelblit was called as a defense witness to address whether police acted with the attorney-general’s authorization and whether any investigative steps exceeded that approval.
03
Official Statements & Responses
Judge Moshe Bar-Am questioned the court’s ability to disregard Mandelblit’s testimony about unlawful investigative actions, emphasizing the importance of a complete factual record. Prosecutor Yehudit Tirosh warned that expanding the inquiry could open “the door” to broader challenges of prosecutorial conduct, but Bar-Am replied that the door had already been opened by Mandelblit’s own testimony. Mandelblit himself maintained that he had authorized the investigations while acknowledging that some actions occurred without his explicit approval, and he rejected claims that pressure dictated his decisions.
04
Data & Statistics
- September 17 – Defense requested Mandelblit’s summons, seeking seven hearing dates between October 11 and October 22, the last falling five days before the October 27 election.
- October 11 – Mandelblit’s testimony began.
- October 12, 2026 – A photograph captured Mandelblit arriving to testify.
05
Why It Matters
The ruling narrows the defense’s ability to probe alleged investigative misconduct, potentially limiting arguments that procedural flaws should invalidate the indictment. Occurring in the final weeks of an election campaign, the decision may influence public perception of the trial’s fairness and could affect Netanyahu’s political standing ahead of the vote.
06
Verbatim Quotes
- “How can we ignore the fact that the attorney-general comes here and testifies about unlawful actions?” — Moshe Bar-Am, judge — Moshe Bar-Am, judge