'Witch Hunt': Trump Calls Not to Trial Leader of Warring Country in Corruption Case

Donald Trump calls for Netanyahu's corruption trial to be overturned. The US president has called the Israeli prime minister a "great hero" and called the charges against him a "witch hunt."

US President Donald Trump has spoken out against the protracted corruption trial of his ally Benjamin Netanyahu, saying in a social media post that the trial was a "witch hunt" and should be cancelled.

“Bibi and I just went through HELL together fighting Israel’s very tough and brilliant long-time enemy, Iran, and Bibi could not have been nicer, sharper or stronger in his LOVE for the incredible Holy Land,” Trump said Wednesday night, using the Israeli leader’s nickname.

The US president, who himself has faced a series of criminal charges and convictions that he believes were politically motivated, said he “just learned that Bibi was subpoenaed on Monday” and offered to pardon the “great hero”.

“It was the United States of America that saved Israel, and now it is the United States of America that will save Bibi Netanyahu,” Trump said.

In December, Netanyahu became the first Israeli prime minister to stand trial for corruption, Agence France-Presse recalls. He called the charges against him “an ocean of absurdity.”

Benjamin Netanyahu has been charged with fraud, breach of trust and bribery in three separate cases. The 75-year-old is accused of accepting tens of thousands of dollars in cigars and champagne from a billionaire Hollywood producer in exchange for furthering his personal and business interests, and of facilitating favorable regulations for media moguls in exchange for favorable coverage of him and his family.

The Israeli prime minister himself, of course, denies any wrongdoing, saying the charges are a witch hunt orchestrated by a hostile media and a biased legal system aimed at bringing down his long rule.

Netanyahu's trial has been repeatedly delayed since it began in May 2020, when the prime minister asked for delays due to the Gaza war and subsequent conflict in Lebanon, Agence France-Presse notes. It is not yet clear when the next hearing will be scheduled.

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