Likud says Netanyahu will sue ex-aide who said ‘it must be assumed he’s a Qatari agent’

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party said Thursday that he would sue his former chief of staff Yoav Horowitz after the ex-aide, who helped found Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar party, said the premier must be considered a “Qatari agent.” Netanyahu will file a suit against Horowitz for half a million shekels ($161,450) over the “serious and false words of incitement” said by “Eisenkot’s partner,” according to the Likud. Horowitz, who was Netanyahu’s chief of staff from 2016 to 2019, was commenting on Channel 12 on the network’s latest reporting in the so-called Qatargate affair, in which top aides to the premier are suspected of serving as paid lobbyists for the Hamas-backing Gulf state during the Gaza war. Netanyahu has assailed the investigation as a “witch hunt.” Channel 12 reported Wednesday that Netanyahu’s aide Jonatan Urich met with senior Qatari official Ali al-Thawadi at least twice in Europe in July 2024. At least one of the meetings was reportedly attended by fellow Netanyahu aide Yisrael Einhorn and US lobbyist Jay Footlik, both of whom are suspects in Qatargate alongside Urich. On Thursday, citing interrogation transcripts, Channel 12 further reported that a senior Mossad official identified by the initial “Shin” had testified that he arranged a meeting with Thawadi at the request of Urich and Einhorn. Get The Times of Israel's Daily Edition by email and never miss our top stories Newsletter email address Get it By signing up, you agree to the terms According to the report, Urich, in his interrogation, denied having asked to meet with Tawhidi or even knowing who the Qatari official is. Jonatan Urich arrives at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, March 30, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90) Despite Urich having apparently met at least twice with Thawadi, one of the most powerful men in Qatar, the report noted that Netanyahu alleged in his own testimony in the affair that Urich had never approached him about Qatar or updated him about his business meetings and dealings with Qatari officials. Appearing on Channel 12 to comment on the report, Horowitz said Netanyahu “knows everything” that goes on in his office and was the one who sent Urich to meet with Thawadi. Advertisement “Benjamin Netanyahu and Jonatan Urich are one and the same,” Horowitz said. “It must be assumed that, right now while we’re talking, Benjamin Netanyahu is a Qatari agent.” Aides Yisrael Einhorn (left) and Jonatan Urich (center) with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in 2019. (Courtesy/ File) While Netanyahu has testified to police in the ongoing Qatargate probe, he has not been named as a suspect. The premier’s aides have denied wrongdoing. Horowitz, who was also acting director-general of the Prime Minister’s Office under Netanyahu, is among the Yashar party’s ten founding members, according to an official filing from when the party was launched in 2025. Eisenkot appointed Horowitz to lead the team responsible for drafting Yashar’s plan for the centrist party’s potential first 100 days in government. Multiple polls indicate Yashar will emerge as the largest party in the October 27 election, making Eisenkot, a former IDF chief, the frontrunner to potentially unseat Netanyahu. Horowitz is not on the party’s candidate list. Help us report truthfully on social media As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos. This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. 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