Netanyahu takes the stand in corruption trial

What happened

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu testified Tuesday at his corruption trial, becoming Israel’s first sitting leader to take the stand as a criminal defendant. The trial has been underway for four years.

Who said what

Allegations of Netanyahu’s corruption have “defined and disrupted Israeli public life for nearly a decade,” The New York Times said. His legal perils have “bitterly divided Israelis and shook Israeli politics through five rounds of elections,” Reuters said, though Hamas’ Oct. 7 surprise attack pushed the allegations “off the public agenda as Israelis came together in grief and trauma.”