[51001] Updates from the legal arena: Netanyahu's trial and the plea deal saga alongside major hearings in Haifa

Changes to the schedule of Netanyahu's testimony

The court granted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's request and approved that his testimony would begin today at 16:00 and continue until 19:00, in order to complete three hours of testimony according to a report on ynet. The request was submitted, as noted in GLOBAL ANALYST 🕎 عالمي, due to an "urgent security-diplomatic schedule". Conversely, in Or-ly Barlev's "Democracy News", which sharply criticizes Netanyahu's conduct, the round of delays was defined as "another day in the circus".

Dispute surrounding a plea deal

At the same time, "News in Real Time" reports on deep disagreements in the Prime Minister's circle regarding the proposal to conduct talks at the President's residence on a plea deal. While the defense team led by Adv. Amit Hadad believes that this is a legal interest, his family members – Sara and Yair Netanyahu – vehemently oppose the move, claiming that it is a "waste of time" for President Herzog.

Evidence hearing in the "Zap" affair

On the civil legal front, an evidence hearing is taking place at the Haifa District Court in a giant lawsuit of 25 million NIS against the company "Zap". According to "News in Real Time", during the hearing, "material gaps in the testimonies" of the company's senior officials regarding the use of information from merchants on the platform were raised. An additional report from the same source notes that the Competition Authority is examining materials that emerged in the hearing, which could indicate practices that harm free competition and the consuming public.