Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu brought up the viral photo taken by Jerusalem Post photographer Marc Israel Sellem in his argument against Walla during his trial on Tuesday.
The image captured the moment in which the prime minister pointed toward someone in the audience at the King David Hotel press conference, with then-German chancellor Angela Merkel to his right. His finger formed a shadow above Merkel’s lip that assimilated and simulated the mustache of Adolf Hitler.
Netanyahu’s argument
In his Tuesday testimony, Netanyahu argued that the viral photo “didn’t support me, it didn’t support her.”
Netanyahu also said the image put the Israeli government in a “bad situation,” causing displeasure among diplomatic actors.
Netanyahu’s remarks came during the sixth day of his testimony for his public corruption trial being held at the Tel Aviv District Court.
Steve Linde, the editor-in-chief of the Post at the time, said that the Prime Minister’s Office asked him to stop the publication of the photo.
“But it was too late: it had gone viral,” said Linde, currently the editor of The Jerusalem Report.
Michael Starr and David Brinn contributed to this report.
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