Netanyahu aide Eli Feldstein indicted for endangering national security

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's aide Eliezer Feldstein, the main suspect in the PMO leak scandal, was indicted Thursday for disclosing confidential information for the purpose of obstructing national security.

A reserves IDF intelligence officer whose identity has not been released for publication was also indicted Thursday on charges of theft, disclosure of confidential information, and obstruction of justice.

Feldstein is accused of leaking classified documents that harmed the war effort and reduced the chances of a successful hostage deal.

Feldstein’s actions “severely endangered state security”

According to the prosecution and investigation findings, Feldstein’s actions “severely endangered state security.”

The State Attorney's Office said that the indictment was filed on charges of stealing highly classified and sensitive information directly from Aman systems, including raw intelligence data. 

"This information was subsequently published by a foreign media outlet after the Israeli military censor explicitly prohibited its publication," the State Attorney's Office explained. 

"This action was carried out with the knowledge of the defendant, Eliezer Feldstein, and was intended to influence Israeli public discourse regarding the handling of the hostage situation," it continued.

The State Attorney's Office also outlined what charges Feldstein filed against Feldstien, which were the disclosure of a classified piece of information, disclosure of a classified piece of information with the intent to harm state security, possession of a classified piece of information, and obstruction of justice. 

Where has Feldstein been? 

Feldstein has been held in prison since his arrest last week; he was moved to suicide watch after a "foreign object" was discovered in his cell on Sunday.

It remains unclear whether Feldstein was acting on his own accord or by Netanyahu’s orders.

Netanyahu has denied that Feldstein was ever an employee of his or closely associated with him. However, Israeli media has been full of images of the two together at numerous events across Israel.

He accused the security services of being overly interested in this case in an attempt to discredit him due to the presence of many other leaks during the war. "It is very puzzling why out of all these leaks, this particular document - the contents of which were known to everyone and helped the State of Israel - received such an aggressive and trendsetting investigation."

A lawyer for the unnamed IDF officer said earlier this month that contrary to his office’s denials, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was aware of the illegal leaks of classified information to the foreign press. 

The lawyer, Michael Fetman, said that Feldstein told his client that he had passed on the information to Netanyahu and that “the prime minister wanted more [information] and cleared a full day to treat the issue.”

The Prime Minister's Office responded to the claims saying “It hurts us very much that the lives of young people are being destroyed by idle claims meant to harm the right-wing government."

The PMO also came out against the conditions of Feldstein's arrest and examination, and called this "more outrageous" given the fact that there has not been an investigation into "criminal leaks from the cabinet and the negotiating team during the entire year of the war."

The leaked information is under gag order but is widely believed to be connected to a document leaked in early September to the German newspaper Bild, which said that, amongst other details, Hamas was intentionally sowing internal division in Israel over the hostage issue and did not intend to go through with a deal.

Notably, Bild’s report was published as public pressure against the prime minister and in favor of a deal peaked after the bodies of six hostages had been located in southern Gaza after being executed just days before.

In addition to the illegal obtaining and leaking of the documents, Feldstein is also reportedly being investigated for tampering with the document before it was leaked.

The investigation into the leaked information is being run by the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency).

Another investigation led by the Israel Police’s Lahav 433 unit is ongoing, reportedly regarding allegations of members of the Prime Minister’s Office tampering with official protocols of meetings and phone conversations during the hours leading up to the October 7 massacre and the hours after it.

The suspicion is that the goal of this alleged tampering was to minimize the prime minister’s involvement and thus his direct responsibility in the proceedings.

Eve Young contributed to this report.