Israel's Supreme Court began hearing petitions against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu forming a government while under criminal indictments.
A large panel of 11 justices, are considering the issue of whether a politician is would be entrusted to form a government in such circumstances, for which the Israeli legal code is not explicitly clear.
Although Israel is under the coronavirus restrictions, protesters gathered outside the parliament to watch the proceedings that were broadcast live.
A wide banner reading in Hebrew: "Saving the country fighting corruption" was highly visible.
An Israeli court indicted Netanyahu earlier this year on charges of breach of trust, fraud, and accepting bribes. He has denied any wrongdoing.
If the court rules that Netanyahu should not serve as prime minister, Israel could likely hold election again, the fourth in just over 12 consecutive months.
Following another deadlocked election, Netanyahu signed a power-sharing deal with main rival, Benny Gantz. Under the deal Netanyahu serves as prime minister for the first 18 months while Ganz serves the next 18 months.
