Netanyahu Aide Faces Indictment Over Leaked Military Secrets to German Press

An aide to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing indictment on national security charges for allegedly leaking classified military information to a German newspaper during Israel’s war in Gaza, the country’s attorney general announced late Sunday.

Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara said that Jonatan Urich, a senior adviser to Netanyahu, along with another unnamed aide, is suspected of extracting sensitive intelligence from the Israeli military and passing it to Bild, a prominent German tabloid.

According to the statement, the leak was intended to shape public perception in Netanyahu’s favor and steer national discourse surrounding the controversial deaths of six Israeli hostages held by Palestinian militants in August 2024.

“The goal was to influence public perception of Prime Minister Netanyahu and affect the national conversation surrounding the deaths of the six hostages,” Baharav-Miara stated.

The hostages, whose bodies were later recovered from a Hamas tunnel in southern Gaza, had become a powerful symbol of public anger. Their deaths sparked nationwide protests, with grieving families accusing Netanyahu of intentionally undermining ceasefire negotiations for political gain.

Netanyahu has rejected those accusations, placing blame squarely on Hamas for the breakdown of talks.

“It is Hamas that walked away from the deal,” the Prime Minister insisted in a press conference.

Hamas, in turn, has claimed that Israel’s military operations derailed the negotiations.

At the time of the killings, Israeli defense officials confirmed that four of the six slain hostages were among more than 30 captives Hamas had agreed to release under a prospective ceasefire agreement — a deal that ultimately never materialized.

The Bild article at the center of the controversy, published just days after the hostages’ bodies were found, appeared to support Netanyahu’s version of events. It detailed Hamas’ alleged negotiating tactics and, notably, echoed the Prime Minister’s assertions about the group’s intransigence. The paper claimed its report was based on “authentic documents.”

Following news of the legal probe, Bild stated that it does not comment on its sources and declined further comment when contacted on Monday.

If the indictment moves forward after the hearing, it would mark one of the most high-profile national security leaks in Israel in recent years — and a politically explosive development amid ongoing turmoil over the Gaza conflict and Netanyahu’s leadership.