ISraeli Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Liberman accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of attempting to incite a “civil war”.
“What is jarring is that instead of focusing on his trials, Netanyahu is stirring up tensions between the parts of the people,” Liberman told Kan radio in an interview.
He was one of many others who criticized the PM for a speech he delivered.
Netanyahu staged a press briefing ahead of the hearing outside the courtroom, where he slammed the three corruption cases against him as "slanderous and delusional."
“His trial didn’t start with a presentation of the evidence, it started with wild incitement against the rule of law, against the court. He knows it will end in violence but he doesn’t care,” opposition leader Yair Lapid said.
Former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Monday likened Netanyahu to a “godfather” who heads a criminal organization made up of Likud ministers.
“I saw it [Netanyahu’s speech ahead of the hearing] and I had a feeling it was a scene from Francis Ford Coppola's 'Godfather' movie,” said Olmert in an interview.
“The head of a crime organization surrounded by people who execute orders.”
In 2009, Olmert stepped down after the police recommended charging him with corruption. He was later on sent to trial and condemned for receiving bribery.
