Bild leak affair defendants to respond to charges against them in first since Urich added

The Tel Aviv District Court has scheduled December 15 for the defendants in the Bild leak affair to formally respond to the charges against them. This hearing comes more than two years after the original indictment was filed and marks the first court appearance since the indictment was amended last month to include Yonatan Urich, a senior adviser to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as a defendant. He joins former Prime Minister's Office spokesman Eli Feldstein and IDF reservist Ari Rosenfeld.

This is the first time Urich and Feldstein have appeared in court together since their confrontation with police during the investigation in April 2025. Rosenfeld was also present. Despite the initial indictment of Feldstein and Rosenfeld nearly two years ago in November 2024, the defendants have yet to enter formal pleas or have their accounts heard in court.

Defense lawyers raised objections on Tuesday, arguing that they cannot respond to the amended indictment while significant investigative materials from the overlapping Qatargate affair remain unprovided. The prosecution indicated that the Qatargate investigation is "nearing completion" but has not yet concluded, despite previous suggestions otherwise. The prosecution urged the court for the defendants to respond to the indictment on Tuesday, but defense counsel insisted this was impossible without the outstanding evidence.

Rosenfeld's attorney, Uri Korb, requested the dismissal of the indictment, citing alleged investigative failures and the non-disclosure of full case materials. Feldstein's attorney, Oded Saboray, further argued that Feldstein and Rosenfeld were denied a pre-indictment hearing, a right he contends they are entitled to, especially given the amendments to the prosecution's case. He questioned why Urich received such a hearing while his clients did not, calling it discriminatory.

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They should invite us to a hearing, hear our arguments and decide. Why are we being discriminated against? Why was Yonatan Urich invited to a hearing and we were not? We were deprived of a right that the legislature found to be fundamental.