JERUSALEM, April 25 (Xinhua) -- The trial of former Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman on charges of fraud and breach of trust resumed on Thursday at the Jerusalem Magistrate Court.
The discussion which started Thursday included the testimony of the former ambassador to Belarus Ze'ev Ben Aryeh, whom Lieberman is charged of illegally promoting as the ambassador to Latvia.
In addition, the foreign ministry's comptroller Victor Harel also took the stand on Thursday to testify about the illegal appointment.
Lieberman is charged with illegally working in the ministry to promote Ben Arye as the ambassador to Latvia after the former provided him with confidential information pertaining to an ongoing investigation against Lieberman.
According to the indictment, Lieberman took an active part in promoting Ben Aryeh's and told foreign ministry officials to appoint him over ten other candidates as a "reward" for assisting Lieberman.
Ben Aryeh, who told reporters he will tell the truth in court on Thursday morning, was convicted in October in obstruction of justice and passing information to an unauthorized person as part of a plea bargain and sentenced for four months of community service.
In a dramatic turn of events, the key witness in the trial of former Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman on charges of fraud and breach of trust has been declared by the prosecution as a hostile witness, after the witness claimed that he did not remember asking the defendant to promote him.
The trial will hold another four sessions throughout April and May and a verdict is expected within the next few months.
If Lieberman is convicted of a charge carrying moral turpitude or sentenced to more than three months, he will be barred from running to a post in the Knesset (parliament) for seven years.
Lieberman plead not guilty as his trial commenced in February, saying that Ben Aryeh was "unanimously chosen by the foreign minister's appointment committee."
Lieberman was appointed last week as the head of the Knesset's prestigious Foreign Affairs and Security Committee, to the ire of opposition lawmakers who said there was a conflict of interests in the nomination, as the post oversees the foreign ministry.
In addition, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not yet nominate a foreign minister following the January 22 elections, apparently holding the portfolio on wait for Lieberman, once his trial ends.
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