Like the Watergate affair that brought down President Richard Nixon, the details of the latest scandal to rock the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office and the whole of the Israeli political sphere have emerged gradually over the past six months.
Mounting evidence shows that close aides to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have, unbeknownst to the Israeli public, been working directly or indirectly for Qatar, the country that funded Hamas as it was planning the murderous rampage of October 7.
Bar Peleg, the Haaretz journalist who broke the story that began Qatargate, reviews the fast-moving developments and details of the unfolding story with Haaretz Podcast host Allison Kaplan Sommer, and explains why it matters.
Netanyahu’s desire to disrupt law enforcement’s investigation into Qatargate has been frequently cited as a reason for his recent intensive efforts to fire both Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara and Shin Bet Head Ronen Bar.
Moreover, says Peleg, because of the Israeli government’s policy of « buying quiet » from Hamas with Qatari cash in the years leading up to October 7, and the decision to put Doha at the center of hostage negotiations, « we need to know if close Netanyahu advisors had Qatari interests on their mind. They whisper in his ear, he listens to these people – and that affects our lives in Israel. »