The trial of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on corruption charges was postponed Sunday, an hour after it was launched in a court in occupied East Jerusalem.
During Sunday's session, Netanyahu's lawyers asked for several more months to study the elements of the evidence presented against him, while the Public Prosecution requested that witness statements be heard quickly.
The three judges confirmed that they would study the requests of the parties, and adjourned the session without setting a new date for the resumption of the hearings.
Dozens of Netanyahu's supporters and opponents demonstrated in the vicinity of the court, which witnessed an intense security presence, according to the official Kan channel.
On his arrival to the courtroom, Netanyahu accused the government's attorney general, Avichai Mendelblit, of colluding with unnamed parties to topple him and "putting an end to the oath ruling," he said.
Surrounded by a group of ministers from the right-wing Likud party, Netanyahu spoke forcefully in an attempt to show his standing before the charges against him.
"These investigations have been corrupted and fabricated, from the first moment," Netanyahu said of accusations of bribery, breach of trust and fraud in three cases.
"They want to bring me down in every way ... What is happening today is an attempt to thwart the will of the people, an attempt to topple me and the right-wing camp," he added.
Netanyahu suggested that his trial be carried live on live broadcasts, saying, "Instead of the leaks, I suggest a simple solution that everything be broadcast."
For his part, Netanyahu's lawyer, Beja Batman, asked the court to give two to three months to "understand the scope of the investigation material."
"Within two to three months we will see if we are forced to ask for the indictment to be corrected, and what will the allegations be," said Batman.
No filming
The Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper said that the Israeli prime minister refused to sit on the indictment until the last photographer left the courtroom.
Israeli officials accused of corruption cases have often sought to avoid documenting the scene of their sitting in the indictment, including former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert at his trial in 2014.
Netanyahu is accused of bribery, breach of trust and fraud in three corruption cases, and the court rejected his request to be absent from the session and obliged him to appear before it.
Last January, the Israeli government's attorney general, Avichai Mandelblit, filed an indictment with the Israeli Central Court in East Jerusalem against Netanyahu after the latter's failure to obtain parliamentary immunity.
According to the private "Channel 12", it is expected that the trial of Netanyahu will take at least two years and possibly three years, as important diplomatic visits that were scheduled for the pre-determined trial sessions can be taken into consideration, for example.
Last Sunday, the Israeli Knesset gave confidence to the new coalition government led by Netanyahu, and its members were sworn in.
The new government is a coalition between the right-wing bloc led by Netanyahu's Likud party, and the "Blue and White" party headed by Defense Minister Benny Gantz, and it was agreed that both would take turns to head it.