Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu testifies in ‘Qatargate’ probe

Jerusalem: Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu testified for about two hours before investigators at his office in Jerusalem, Israel’s media reported.

The open testimony is part of an investigation known as “Qatargate,” which examines alleged business ties between associates of Netanyahu and the Qatari government, Xinhua news agency reported.

According to Channel 12 tv, the prime minister was questioned as someone with knowledge of the affair, rather than as a suspect. The open testimony followed a directive of Israel’s Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara.

Earlier on Monday, Israeli police arrested two suspects in the case –Yonatan Urich, a senior adviser to Netanyahu, and Eli Feldstein, the prime minister’s former military affairs spokesman.

The probe focuses on suspected improper business dealings between the two close associates of Netanyahu and Qatar, a Gulf state that does not have formal diplomatic ties with Israel but has played a key role in mediating ceasefire talks in the Gaza Strip and negotiating hostage releases.

According to Channel 12, Feldstein and Urich are suspected of contact with a foreign agent, bribery, fraud, breach of trust, and money laundering in the case.

In his video statement after the testimony, Netanyahu said the probe is “a political hunt designed to prevent the dismissal of the head of the Shin Bet and also to bring about the overthrow of a right-wing prime minister.”