Lawyers for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have asked the country's attorney general to postpone a pre-indictment hearing in three criminal corruption cases against the premier by at least a year, the Haaretz daily reported, Tuesday.
Attorney General Avichai Mendelblit had previously said that the hearing must be held by July 10. But he is expected to agree to a hearing by the end of September, with the time allotted for a pre-indictment hearing in Netanyahu's cases shorter than in past cases involving public figures.
Netanyahu's lawyers say that they need more time to properly prepare their defense for the three cases, citing the enormous amount of materials to be examined. While the case files had been available to the premier's legal team from April 10, they were only collected last week after a dispute over payment was partially settled.
A spokesman for Netanyahu said that an interim agreement on payment was made with one of the defense attorneys, Amit Hadad, who is representing the premier while fees are settled with the rest of the defense team.
Netanyahu faces indictment for bribery, fraud, and breach of trust in three criminal corruption investigations that have plagued him for years: one in which he is accused of accepting lavish gifts from wealthy benefactors in exchange for government favors, and two in which he is accused of offering benefits in exchange for favorable news coverage of him and his family.
Netanyahu has slammed the cases as part of a "witch hunt" orchestrated by the media and political rivals aimed at toppling his right-wing government. He has vowed not step down as prime minister even if brought to trial.
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