BICOM

The trial of Israel’s former-foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman began yesterday in the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court. Lieberman entered a not guilty plea in a case that could have large repercussions on his political career.

Lieberman, who remains head of the Yisrael Beitenu party, is charged with fraud and breach of trust over allegations that he failed to disclose the receipt of illicit information relating to separate allegations against him, from Israel’s former ambassador to Belarus, Zeev Ben Aryeh. It is alleged that Lieberman then pushed through the appointment of Ben Aryeh as the envoy to Latvia as a reward for his actions.

Lieberman resigned as foreign minister after the charges were announced in December. However, he remained the number two in the joint Likud-Beitenu faction that won the largest number of Knesset seats in last month’s election and is now attempting to form a coalition government. Lieberman is entitled to remain a member of the Knesset throughout the duration of the trial. It is thought that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is prepared to effectively delay the appointment of a permanent foreign minister in the new government, allowing Lieberman to fill the role should he be acquitted. However, should Lieberman be found guilty of charges deemed to carry moral turpitude or handed a prison sentence of three months or longer, he will be barred from serving as a government minister for seven years.

Following yesterday’s preliminary hearing, one of Lieberman’s lawyers, Jacob Weinroth said, “We are very pleased. We passed the preliminaries…We want this to end quickly.” The next four hearings are scheduled to take place in April and May, with Lieberman’s former deputy foreign minister Danny Ayalon set to be the key prosecution witness.