Netanyahu aide leaked secret docs to influence public opinion on hostage talks, say court docs

An aide of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leaked secret documents to influence public opinion on hostages talks, according to court documents.

Eliezer Feldstein, an aide to Netanyahu, leaked documents to plant stories in the press to shape the public opinion on hostage talks in favour of his boss, according to documents released by Israel’s Rishon Lezion Magistrate’s Court and reported by media outlets.

Feldstein was arrested earlier this month and is being prosecuted for the leaks.

Feldstein along with one more unnamed person have been charged with transferring classified information to harm the state, collecting classified material to harm the state, and conspiracy to commit a crime, among other charges, according to The Times of Israel.

Feldstein’s leaks resulted in media reports in UK-based Jewish Chronicle and Germany’s Bild outlets, as per CNN.

The idea behind the leaks was to shift the public opinion in favour of Netanyahu after he was at the receiving end of nationwide outrage following the murder of six hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip . The ToI reported that the idea behind the leak was to blame Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar for the impasse in talks for the hostage deal and imply that protests in Israel were playing into Hamas’ hands.

Even though Sinwar and Hamad had hardened their stance in indirect talks with Israel, a major obstacle in the finalisation of any deal to end the war in Gaza and secure the release of hostages was the set of demands inserted by Netanyahu months after the original ceasefire proposal was floated. These demands, including the control of Philadelphi Corridor along the Egypt-Gaza border and control of the east-west route within Gaza, were non-starters for Hamas.

How did Feldstein leak docs?

Feldstein got secret documents in April from an Israeli military’s reservist non-commission officer (NCO), who had originally got the documents illegally, according to ToI, which cited court documents.

Later, the military learnt of the leak and assessed it harmed the war’s aim of freeing the hostages as well as military and intelligence agencies’ operations in Gaza, as per court documents.

After a preliminary investigation by the Israeli Army’s information security department, military chief Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi asked the domestic intelligence agency Shin Bet to start an investigation to identify the leaker, according to court documents.

This investigation, as per the court documents, identified the above-mentioned reservist NCO along with two reservist officers and a career NCO as part of the operation, which ultimately led them to Feldstein.