Trump on Wednesday sprang to Netanyahu’s defence, describing the case against him as a “witch hunt” [GETTY]
President Donald Trump said Saturday the United States was “not going to stand” for the continued prosecution of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on corruption charges.
“It is INSANITY doing what the out-of-control prosecutors are doing to Bibi Netanyahu,” Trump said in a Truth Social post, adding that the judicial process was going to interfere with Netanyahu’s ability to conduct talks with Palestinian group Hamas, and Iran.
Trump’s second post over the course of a few days defending Netanyahu and calling for the cancellation of the trial went a step further to tie Israel’s legal action to US aid.
“The United States of America spends Billions of Dollar a year, far more than on any other Nation, protecting and supporting Israel. We are not going to stand for this,” Trump said.
Netanyahu “right now” was in the process of negotiating a deal with Hamas, Trump said, without giving further details. On Friday, the Republican president told reporters that he believes a ceasefire is close.
An Israeli court on Friday rejected Netanyahu’s request to postpone giving testimony in his corruption trial, ruling that he had not provided adequate justification for his request.
In one case, Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, are accused of accepting more than $260,000 worth of luxury goods, including cigars, jewellery, and champagne, from billionaires in exchange for political favours.
In two other cases, Netanyahu is accused of attempting to negotiate more favourable coverage from two Israeli media outlets.
Netanyahu has denied any wrongdoing and has thanked Trump for his support in Israel’s war on Iran, which saw a ceasefire agreement earlier this week.
His lawyer had asked the court to excuse the leader from hearings over the next two weeks, saying he needs to concentrate on “security issues.”
Trump on Wednesday sprang to Netanyahu’s defence, describing the case against him as a “witch hunt”. On Saturday, he described Netanyahu as a “War Hero”.
“This travesty of ‘Justice’ will interfere with both Iran and Hamas negotiations,” said Trump, although it was unclear what negotiations he was referring to with regard to Iran.
Negotiations are ongoing for the return of the remaining captives and the bodies of those killed, while Israel’s war on Gaza continues unabated.
The US leader also likened Netanyahu’s legal troubles to his own, which he faced before taking office for his second term.
“It is a POLITICAL WITCH HUNT, very similar to the Witch Hunt that I was forced to endure,” said Trump.
The Republican was convicted on 34 counts of falsifying business records in May 2024 in a case related to hush money payments to a porn star.
Trump also faced two federal cases, one related to his alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, which he lost to Democrat Joe Biden.
