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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing a growing political scandal over the leak of classified information that the families of hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip say has undermined support for their release efforts.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s media adviser was among five people arrested as part of an Israeli court last week that partially lifted a gag order on the leak investigation. The leaks are linked to the now-discredited Hamas program and appear to support Netanyahu’s claim that extremists, not Israeli leaders, were the obstacles to a hostage release deal.
On Tuesday, demonstrators blocked a busy highway in Tel Aviv, Israel’s business capital, to express their anger at the prime minister over the leak. They called for a deal to end the war in Gaza and release the 101 Israeli hostages still held in the enclave.
“This week, Prime Minister Netanyahu’s true war aims became clear: to disrupt the hostage trade, launch an incitement campaign against families fighting to bring their loved ones home, and severely undermine national security. ” said the women’s protest movement demanding Prime Minister Netanyahu’s return. Hostage, one of the groups involved.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said no one from his office had been arrested or questioned, adding that the publication of information in articles in Britain’s Jewish Chronicle and Germany’s Bild newspaper had no effect on hostage negotiations or the Israeli state. He denied accusations that he had caused any damage to national security.
However, the Hostage and Missing Families Forum, which represents relatives of people held by Hamas, found that officials had “sought to undermine public support for the hostage trade” and said it was “outraged”. expressed deep concern.”
Opposition politicians have also used the allegations to criticize Prime Minister Netanyahu. Yair Lapid, leader of the main opposition party Yesh Atid, said the leak “should terrify all Israelis” and called for an investigation to find out whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu himself knew about the leak.
“(Prime Minister Netanyahu) claims he does not know what his office is doing while Israel is in an existential war,” Lapid said on Sunday. “If that’s true, he is unfit… to lead the state of Israel in the most difficult war in history.”
Meanwhile, Benny Gantz, leader of the center-right National Unity Party, said of the leak of confidential materials, “It is necessary to investigate and clarify the matter to the end.”
“When sensitive security information is stolen and becomes a tool for a political survival movement, this is not only a crime, it is a national crime,” he said.
The scandal became public knowledge last week after the gag order was partially lifted. Chief Justice Menachem Mizrahi said the leak could have compromised Israel’s ability to rescue hostages still being held in Gaza.
The leak cited documents alleging that Hamas planned to divide Israeli society through a propaganda campaign involving hostages. They also suggested that the militants were trying to smuggle hostages into Egypt through tunnels under the so-called Philadelphia Corridor, which separates Gaza and Egypt.
The article was published in late August and early September, when Netanyahu was under intense pressure from massive street protests to accept a deal to end the war and release the hostages. Israeli intelligence estimates that about a third of the hostages are already dead.
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However, Prime Minister Netanyahu has refused to relinquish control of the Philadelphia Corridor, which many regional diplomats believe is a major reason for the failure of negotiations.
After the article ran, the Israeli military told reporters that the document was written by a junior Hamas official, was outdated, and did not represent military intelligence on Hamas strategy.
Support for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party, which collapsed following the October 7 Hamas attack, has begun to recover in recent months.
Pollster and political analyst Dalia Scheindlin said that despite Netanyahu’s track record of weathering political storms, he is still weighing widespread calls within Israel for an agreement to bring the hostages home. He said the scandal could deal a political blow to Prime Minister Netanyahu.
However, she added that if elections are not held as scheduled until 2026, they could become meaningless. “The question, as always, is when will these processes be tested?” she said. “Because even if people are at breaking point now, who knows what will happen in two years?”
