Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu continued testifying on Tuesday in Tel Aviv District Court in Case 2000, and during a contentious cross-examination his lawyer, Amit Hadad, presented rare photos from Arnon Milchan’s Paris estate that had not been introduced by the prosecution. The images show Netanyahu at the estate in the early 2000s with actor Sean Connery, then MK Yair Lapid, and members of Milchan’s extended family, in an effort to challenge the state’s portrayal of Netanyahu’s ties to Milchan.
Netanyahu described the scene as a social visit, saying, “This is a social gathering at Arnon’s house at the estate outside Paris.” He added, “I am sitting in red and Arnon and Sean Connery are third. Yair Lapid is also there. As you can see there is a cigar next to me. Yair Lapid is also holding a cigar.” When asked when the photos were taken, he replied, “I am already a citizen here. Sometime, maybe in 2000 or something.”
The prime minister also pushed back on allegations that he received cigars from James Packer without reporting them, mocking the prosecution’s attempt to “catch” him. “You caught me, what a huge achievement for the prosecution. Do I need to take inventory of all my friends?” he said. He likewise rejected the claim that his dealings with Noni Mozes were a corrupt bargain, accusing prosecutors of presenting “false appearances” and creating an “alternate universe” in which ordinary long-term friendship is cast as a criminal scheme.
At one point Netanyahu addressed the judges directly, saying he would have reacted differently if all the materials had been shown to him earlier. “The truth is screaming from the heavens,” he said, adding that there was no way to prevent a free vote and that “they invented this offense” he says he did not commit. The prosecution maintains that Netanyahu promoted the Israel Hayom bill in return for favorable coverage, while the defense says Hadad’s renewed questioning is exposing selective and biased questioning by investigators and prosecutors.
