The Israel Police’s Lahav 433 Unit of International Crime Investigations arrested two suspects in the ‘Qatargate’ affair, in which close aides of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu allegedly received funding from Qatar in order to promote its image while serving in the prime minister’s office.
The identity of the two suspects was not made public due to a gag order.
Israeli Businessman Gil Birger admitted in recordings published by KAN's Reshet Bet on Wednesday that he had transferred funds from a Qatari lobbyist to a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's media team, Eli Feldstein.
According to the recordings, the lobbyist, Jay Footlik, requested that Birger assist in transferring the funds to Feldstein for VAT purposes. The recordings confirm a report on Tuesday evening by Channel 13’s Baruch Kara.
According to Kara, Feldstein ceased receiving his salary from the prime minister’s office in April 2024 after failing a security background check. However, he continued working for the prime minister until October 2024, when he was arrested on charges of leaking a classified document to the German newspaper Bild on behalf of Netanyahu, in order to relieve public outcry over the Hamas killing of six hostages in Rafah due to IDF proximity.
According to Kara, Feldstein’s salary was effectively paid by the Qatari government during that period, while at the same time working alongside the prime minister, serving primarily as his liaison to military reporters.
The recordings and report regarding Feldstein’s salary could not be independently confirmed by The Jerusalem Post.
Feldstein’s attorneys respond
Feldstein’s attorneys confirmed on Wednesday that he had received funds from Birger.
"The funds Feldstein received from the businessman whose recording was published were for strategy and communication services Feldstein provided to the Prime Minister's Office, and not for Qatar," Feldstein's attorneys explained. "It was a temporary and partial solution by elements in Netanyahu's office to a difficulty they encountered regarding Feldstein's salary payment from the Prime Minister's Office, without any impact on the identity of the service recipient—the Prime Minister,” the attorneys said.
Feldstein's attorneys claimed that he did not know it was a service for Qatar. “As we have claimed from the moment the allegations were first raised, Feldstein has never worked for Qatar, and on political and security matters, he worked solely for the Prime Minister and his office. He did not transfer information to Qatar and never received money from them. If there is any connection between the businessman in question and other parties, including Qatar, this was not presented to Feldstein and was unknown to him,” the attorneys said.
Feldstein's lawyers added that he was unaware of any work done by fellow Netanyahu media advisor Yonatan Urich for the Qataris. Haaretz reported in November that Urich had provided public relations services to Qatar ahead of the 2022 World Cup.
Urich’s lawyers, Amit Hadad and Noa Milstein said in response, "Urich has no idea who Gil Birger is—he has never spoken to him or met him.
“Urich is a private consultant who is not a state employee and is not employed by the Prime Minister's Office. Therefore, he is neither appointed nor responsible for employment or personnel matters in the office, meaning he does not 'arrange' jobs or transfer funds to anyone. This is a false and fabricated affair with motives that are transparent and known to all. There is no offense involved, and the false leaks regarding it have tainted it from day one,” the lawyers said.
“The attempt to create an artificial conflict between Urich and Feldstein while amplifying media reports amounts to obstruction and contamination of the investigation. The flow of false leaks that began on its first day must be stopped," they said.
The Prime Minister’s Office said in response, "Another fake news story that never happened and never existed. According to a report, the head of the Investigations and Intelligence Division in the police clarified to the Attorney General, 'I don’t understand what offense is being investigated (regarding Qatar). This case is not progressing,'” the PMO said, referring to reports earlier this week that the police had questioned the purpose of the investigation. The Attorney-General’s Office responded at the time that the police were fully partners in the investigation and supported it.
The PMO continued, “The new fake news is a desperate attempt to invent a baseless justification for an offense that does not exist. The Prime Minister's Office does not 'arrange' payments for anyone. Every payment in a government office is made in accordance with the law and through authorized officials only. Any other claim is unfounded, aiming to breathe life into yet another fabricated affair," it concluded.
Following Feldstein’s arrest in October, the prime minister’s office initially claimed it had had no connection to him. The prime minister, however, later admitted that Feldstein had worked closely alongside him and even argued that the investigation of Feldstein was part of an attempt to remove him from power.