Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel is set on Tuesday to take the stand in his corruption trial for the first time since it began in 2020, raising the stakes in a divisive case that has disrupted Israel’s political life for years.

Mr. Netanyahu’s testimony is expected to continue, on and off, for several weeks, creating the spectacle of a sitting prime minister defending himself against graft charges, even as Israel continues to fight Hamas in Gaza.

The case is at the heart of a deep political rift among Israelis about Mr. Netanyahu’s character and has led to half a decade of political instability.

His supporters claim that a liberal deep state is trying to oust him by judicial means after failing to do so at the ballot box. His opponents have called on him to step down, with some accusing him of prolonging both the war and the trial to keep himself in power and out of jail.

For security reasons, Mr. Netanyahu will give his testimony from a bunker beneath Tel Aviv instead of in the Jerusalem courthouse where the trial usually takes place.