Confidant of Israel’s Netanyahu turns state witness in corruption case

JERUSALEM: A confidant of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has agreed to turn state’s witness in one of several corruption investigations posing a serious threat to the conservative leader’s political survival, local media said. Shlomo Filber’s decision to testify for the state against his former boss is a dramatic turn for Netanyahu, whose inner circle had so far seemed watertight. Filber’s change of heart could leave the tough-talking Netanyahu at his most vulnerable yet, with one critic writing him off as a “political corpse”. The development has also fuelled speculation that Netanyahu, 68, will call a snap election to try to stall legal proceedings during the campaign and rally his right-wing power base behind him.