The judges in former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's criminal trial ruled against the prosecutor's request to alter the details of the indictment against him.
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The State Attorney's Office had requested to change the day of a meeting during which Netanyahu allegedly gave orders regarding a bribe. The court stated the amendment would be "unfair" to the defendant.
Netanyahu, a former prime minister, and the current opposition leader, is facing several indictments for graft.
Referred to as Case 4,000, the trial in question is considered the most serious charge as it involves allegations Netanyahu granted benefits to Israeli media businessman Shaul Elovitch in exchange for favorable coverage from the Walla news site.
The initiative to change the indictment was the result of contradictory testimony from Netanyahu's former aide Shlomo Filber. Earlier in March, Filber testified as a state witness, mixing up the alleged date of the meeting and saying he could have misinterpreted a hand gesture by the former prime minister.
Judges justified the rejection at this late stage of the trial due to the fact that Filber had already been cross-examined. They claimed the amendment could harm Netanyahu's "ability to conduct defense."
Elovitch and his wife were also charged with bribery in Case 4,000 but denied the allegations. Apart from this criminal trial, the former prime minister also faces charges of fraud and breach of trust.
This article was first published by i24NEWS.
