Netanyahu’s former aide alleges attempt to alter 7 October records

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing renewed criticism over the 7 October 2023 Hamas-led attack and subsequent captive negotiations, Israeli media have reported . Netanyahu's former military secretary has accused him of prioritising his political survival over attempts to secure the captives' release. Avi Gil, who served as Netanyahu's military secretary at the time of the attack and held the post until 2024, made the allegations in interviews with Israel's Channel 12 and daily Israel Hayom. Gil said Netanyahu had abandoned possible opportunities to secure the captives' return because an agreement threatened his governing coalition. Some of those people later died in captivity. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters When asked whether captives had died in captivity for political reasons despite the possibility of bringing them home, he said: “That is accurate. They could have come back before.” Gil also said that there had been occasions when Netanyahu reversed course after far-right coalition ministers opposed a proposed deal. UAE president 'told Netanyahu' of Hamas plan ahead of 7 October 2023 Read More » “Over time, gaps developed between the recommendations of the defence authorities and maybe even the prime minister’s own wishes,” on the one hand, “and the decisions or recommendations of his ministers,” he said. In another allegation, Gil said that Netanyahu had asked him to prepare a document outlining a possible prisoner agreement in 2024, but later ordered him not to present it to ministers after finance minister Bezalel Smotrich threatened to bring down the government if a deal was reached. Netanyahu denied the accusations, calling Gil's comments "an attempt to obscure the simple and painful truth about his failure". Netanyahu's Likud party also dismissed the wider allegations as “part of the false and politically motivated propaganda campaign against Prime Minister Netanyahu and Likud”. Altered records Gil also accused Netanyahu's chief of staff, Tzachi Braverman, of seeking to change the time of a phone call between Gil and the prime minister on the morning of 7 October. According to Gil, a stenographer at the prime minister's office told him in January 2024 that Braverman had ordered her to change the time of their first recorded secure-line call from 6:40 am to 6:29 am, when the Hamas-led attack began. "She came into my office, closed the door and told me everything," he said of the stenographer. Netanyahu asked UAE leader to publicly deny 7 October 2023 warning to Israel: Report Read More » "If I remember correctly, the change [to the minutes] was carried out by the chief of staff," added Gil. "Those are the facts. They cannot be disputed." "This is forgery," he said. The allegations concern a potentially significant detail in the dispute over when Netanyahu was informed of the attack. Braverman has been investigated for suspected forgery and fraud related to the alleged alteration of records, according to The Times of Israel. In response to the controversy, opposition figures have called for the original recordings, rather than the written transcripts only, to be examined. "Don't rely solely on the written transcripts of things. Demand the original recordings … listen to what was said," Gil said. Copyright © 2014 - 2026 . Middle East Eye. All rights reserved. Only England and Wales jurisdiction apply in all legal matters. Middle East Eye ISSN 2634-2456