Netanyahu asks District Court to cancel testimony in trial due to diplomatic, security matters

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's scheduled testimony in his ongoing criminal trial was canceled Wednesday morning after his defense team cited urgent "diplomatic and security matters." The Jerusalem District Court agreed to the cancellation after receiving a detailed explanation from Netanyahu's attorneys.

Netanyahu's legal team had initially requested to shorten his testimony to just two hours, but later asked for a complete cancellation of Wednesday's appearance. His attorney, Noa Milstein, stated that the prime minister had been occupied with critical state affairs until late Tuesday night and had an early schedule on Wednesday. Milstein offered that Netanyahu's chief of staff could provide further clarification if needed.

The prosecution informed the court that it could not take a position on the request without knowing the specific reasons behind it. Presiding Judge Rivka Friedman-Feldman directed the defense to submit detailed justifications, which could be handled confidentially if necessary. After reviewing the submitted clarification, the judges ruled that the hearing would not proceed for the day.

This cancellation marks another interruption in Netanyahu's testimony, which has been repeatedly affected by security and diplomatic constraints. Previous hearing days have also been shortened or canceled due to such considerations. The next hearing in the trial is scheduled for Sunday, May 31.