Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a speech in Jerusalem on March 27. (Atef Safadi/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock)
TEL AVIV — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was abruptly summoned from his corruption trial to provide testimony Monday afternoon after at least one of his aides was arrested amid mounting allegations of financial ties between Netanyahu’s office and Qatar, a country with which Israel has no formal relations and which is a key backer of Hamas.
Netanyahu has long denied the allegations, as has Qatar. A statement released by Netanyahu’s Likud party described the “thuggish” arrest of one of the prime minister’s top advisers, Jonathan Urich, as marking “a new low in the political witch hunt aimed at toppling a right-wing prime minister and preventing the dismissal of the failed head of the Shin Bet” — referring to Israel’s internal security agency and its director, Ronen Bar, whom Netanyahu said this month he was dismissing, citing a lack of trust.
“This is not an investigation. This is not law enforcement,” the statement said. “This is an assassination attempt on democracy and an effort to replace the will of the people with the rule of bureaucrats.”
The statement did not list specific charges against Urich, but said he was arrested as the Shin Bet and attorney general’s office were “fabricating a new case about Qatar.”
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The arrests Monday could intensify ongoing criticism of Netanyahu, who resumed strikes in Gaza this month and is increasingly accused of infusing his politics in the management of Israel’s wars.
The proceedings against Netanyahu, Urich and one other individual whose name has not been published — conducted by the Shin Bet and the national crimes unit of the Israeli police — are under a court gag order, but they involve allegations of contact with a foreign agent, the acceptance of bribes, fraud, breach of trust and money laundering, according to Israeli media reports.
Netanyahu is being considered a witness in the case involving Urich, not a suspect, Israeli media reported.
There have been weeks of mounting allegations that Netanyahu and members of his inner circle were involved in the transfer of money from Qatar, a move that legal experts say can be considered violations of Israeli law related to preserving Israel’s national security. Qatar and Israel do not have official relations, but during the Gaza war, Qatar has worked as a mediator between Hamas and Israel.
A Qatari government official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive subject, said: “This is not the first time we have been the subject of a smear campaign by those who do not want to see an end to this conflict or the remaining hostages returned to their families. We will continue our mediation efforts, together with the U.S. and our regional partners, and will not be distracted or deterred by those who actively seek to derail the negotiations and prolong the conflict.”
In recent weeks, Netanyahu has raced forward with plans to replace the country’s top security and legal officials, including Bar and Gali Baharav-Miara, Israel’s attorney general.
The moves triggered massive street protests by critics who accuse Netanyahu of undermining Israeli democracy at a critical point in the country’s history, as its war in Gaza rages on. Netanyahu has dubbed the protesters “anarchists” angling to overthrow his democratically elected government. He has repeatedly claimed that his decision to fire Bar was unrelated to the ongoing investigations into ties between his office and Qatar.
The court drama also coincides with chaos around Netanyahu’s appointment of Eli Sharvit, a former Israeli navy commander, as the next chief of the Shin Bet. Netanyahu’s office said it interviewed seven candidates in recent weeks. Hours later, members of his right-wing government said Sharvit would ultimately not be appointed, since he had participated in the 2023 protests against Netanyahu’s previous program to overhaul and weaken Israel’s judicial system.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid said in a Monday post on X that statements coming out of Netanyahu’s office did not include denials of Israeli officials receiving money from Qatar.
“The reason that sentence is missing is that people in Netanyahu’s office did receive money, from a hostile state, during wartime,” he wrote. “Of all the criminal security-related affairs tied to the Prime Minister’s Office, this isn’t just the most serious, it’s also the most outrageous and dangerous.”
Susannah George in Dubai contributed to this report.