Jerusalem, 16 October, 2026 (TPS-IL) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu intends to file a NIS 500,000 ($133,000) defamation lawsuit against Yoav Horowitz, a close ally of opposition figure Gadi Eisenkot, the Likud party announced late Thursday night.
The legal move follows several media interviews given by Horowitz, a co-founder of Eisenkot’s Yashar party, in which he branded Netanyahu a “Qatari agent.” Horowitz’s accusations relate to the developing “Qatargate” scandal, an ongoing Shin Bet investigation into allegations that Netanyahu’s top media adviser, Yonatan Urich, covertly worked for pay to boost Qatar’s image within the Prime Minister’s Office.
Eisenkot has sharply criticized Netanyahu’s “deafening silence” over the affair, accusing the premier of full complicity. The lawsuit intensifies fierce political and judicial warfare in Israel just weeks ahead of the high-stakes national election scheduled for October 27.
Netanyahu appointed Horowitz as his Chief of Staff in May 2016.
