Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that his lead attorney, Amit Hadad, called him this morning and told him the legal team is in a 'catastrophe,' unable to provide adequate defense five days a week, and that Hadad and the entire team asked to resign. Netanyahu made the statement from the witness stand, according to Israeli media reports.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the court this morning at 10:46 Jerusalem that his lead attorney, Amit Hadad, called him and said the legal team is in a 'catastrophe,' unable to provide proper defense five days a week, prepare witnesses, or coordinate matters they could not discuss until now. Hadad and the entire team asked to resign, Netanyahu said from the witness stand.
As The Zioneer reported at 10:41, Netanyahu earlier demanded to slow the pace of his trial and revealed the team's resignation request. That report was based on the same statement. Today's development adds directly attributed quotes from the prime minister describing Hadad's call as a 'catastrophe' and detailing the team's inability to meet the court schedule.
The prime minister has repeatedly clashed with the court over scheduling during his testimony, which began Tuesday June 23. His defense team had previously refrained from committing to a timeline for questioning, and Netanyahu has cited diplomatic commitments as reasons for breaks. In a prior session, he said he received a classified envelope and had to leave immediately.
The court has pressed for speed, with Netanyahu accusing the prosecution of setting a trap for him during the re-cross-examination. The relationship with his legal team has now become a public part of the trial itself, with today's remarks framing the team's workload as unsustainable.
2 developments
Source and signal
- Internal intake