Netanyahu storms again over Gaza hostages after arrests linked to alleged leak | Benjamin Netanyahu

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is at the center of a new political storm related to a hostage deal in the Gaza war after several people were arrested in connection with the alleged leak of classified documents from his office.

An Israeli court announced the arrests on Friday afternoon before the start of Shabbat, saying that a joint investigation by the police, internal security services and the army had suspected a “violation of national security through the unlawful provision of classified information.” “harmed the realization of Israel's war goals.”

One of those arrested is believed to be the Prime Minister's spokesman.

While most details are still subject to partial secrecy, Israeli media have reported that the war aim in question is the release of the 101 Israeli hostages still being held by Hamas. The suspects are accused of selectively leaking Hamas strategy documents found by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in Gaza and manipulating or editing the material to make it appear as if the Palestinian militant group was sending hostages to Egypt and then wanted to smuggle them into Iran or Yemen.

In September, Netanyahu made the claim in interviews and press conferences to support a new demand he had made in ceasefire and hostage release talks: the need for Israeli troops to remain on the Gaza-Egypt border. The demand was rejected by Hamas on the grounds that it was not part of the terms both sides had already conditionally accepted and was a key reason for the breakdown of months of negotiations.

Netanyahu has repeatedly been accused of delaying an agreement to prevent the collapse of his coalition government. Anything short of a complete victory over Hamas is anathema to his far-right allies, and he is believed to see remaining in office as the best way to avoid prosecution in fraud, bribery and breach of trust cases filed in 2019 . He denies any wrongdoing.

Shortly after the Israeli leader first mentioned the alleged Hamas plan, reports apparently based on the same doctored material appeared in the British newspaper The Jewish Chronicle and the German tabloid Bild and were widely picked up by the Israeli media became.

The Israeli army feared that publication of the articles would jeopardize intelligence efforts in Gaza and launched an investigation into the leak. She announced that she was “unaware of the existence of such a document.” The Jewish Chronicle later retracted the story and fired the journalist who wrote it.

The prime minister's office said Friday that no one who worked for Netanyahu had been questioned or arrested, but did not deny Saturday that the revelations may have come from his office. Dozens of other leaks related to ceasefire and hostage release negotiations appeared in media reports without any investigations being initiated.

The charges are understood to relate to leaking classified documents, negligence in handling the material and using it to influence public opinion, and improperly engaging a consultant without adequate security clearance.

News of the arrests was met with fury by the prime minister's critics in the politically bitterly divided country. On Saturday evening, thousands of people across Israel joined what have become weekly demonstrations for an agreement.

Opposition leader Yair Lapid wrote on