Sara Netanyahu, the wife of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, appeared in court on Sunday on the first day of a fraud trial in which she will be fighting allegations that she misused public funds to order catered meals to the Prime Minister's Residence.
According to the indictment, Sara Netanyahu fraudulently billed the state for hundreds of catered meals supplied by restaurants, bypassing regulations that prohibit the practice if a cook is employed at the residence.
She was charged in June with two counts: one of fraud and breach of trust and one of aggravated fraudulent receipt of goods. If convicted, Netanyahu could face up to five years in prison.
Netanyahu denies any wrongdoing.
Former Deputy Director General at the Prime Minister's Office Ezra Saidoff has also been included in the indictment, with prosecutors saying that he played an active role in the alleged scheme and even tried to cover it up with forged documents.
Sunday's court session dealt mainly with procedural matters. The judge set a meeting with the prosecutors and the defendants' lawyers for Nov. 13 and said he hoped all sides could narrow their differences "or even resolve the case."
However, at this stage, the chances of a settlement appear to be slim because the prosecutors are likely to demand a guilty plea, something Netanyahu's lawyer has ruled out.
At Sunday's hearing, she was not asked to enter a plea.
Netanyahu's lawyers have argued that the indictment does not hold up because the regulations for ordering meals were legally invalid and a household employee had requisitioned the food despite Netanyahu's protestations.
The prime minister, who himself is embroiled in a number of corruption investigations, has called the allegations against his wife absurd and unfounded.
