Coronavirus crisis delays start of Netanyahu corruption trial

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gestures as he delivers a speech at his Jerusalem office, regarding the new measures that will be taken to fight the coronavirus, March 14, 2020. Gali Tibbon/Pool via REUTERS

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's corruption trial was delayed on Sunday for two months, until May, due to the coronavirus crisis.

Israel's Justice Ministry said the trial, due to have opened on March 17 with the reading of an indictment against Israel's longest-serving leader in three graft cases, would begin on May 24 "due to developments related to the spread of the coronavirus".