Netanyahu Slams Corruption Case As “Bugs Bunny Trial”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has escalated his attack on the corruption charges against him, posting a late-night video in which he dismissed the proceedings as a “Bugs Bunny trial” and defended his request for a presidential pardon.

The three-minute clip, released Thursday on social media, marks his most aggressive pushback since formally asking President Isaac Herzog last week to end the case. Netanyahu argued that the investigation is “tearing the country apart,” shortly after it surfaced that former US President Donald Trump had also urged Herzog in a letter to grant him clemency.

In the video, Netanyahu held up a Bugs Bunny puppet, accusing prosecutors of using a cartoon doll he received nearly three decades ago as evidence. “From now on, this trial will be known as the Bugs Bunny trial,” he declared, calling the charges politically motivated attempts to drive him from office.

The long-running case includes allegations that Netanyahu sought favourable media coverage from two Israeli outlets and accepted gifts worth more than $260,000 — cigars, champagne and jewellery — from wealthy businessmen in exchange for political favours. A fourth charge was previously dropped. Netanyahu again rejected the accusations, calling the cigars “gifts from a friend” and insisting that the media outlet he supposedly tried to influence ended up giving him “the most hateful, negative coverage you can imagine.”

Netanyahu, the first sitting Israeli prime minister to face trial, has been required to appear in court three times a week since recent hearings intensified. He claims the schedule is crippling his ability to govern effectively. “This farce is costing the country dearly,” he said. “I can’t deal with that… so I asked for a pardon.”

Outside the Tel Aviv courthouse on Monday, the political rift was on full display. Supporters and critics gathered in rival groups, chanting across barricades as some demonstrators dressed in bright orange prison-style jumpsuits to symbolize where they believe the prime minister belongs.

With the trial dragging into its sixth year and Netanyahu insisting he will continue fighting, the courtroom battle has become a symbol of Israel’s deep internal divide — one unlikely to settle anytime soon.