In Qatargate Fiasco, Netanyahu’s ‘Witch Hunt’ Narrative Takes Cues from Trump

As Israel's embattled PM decries an investigations into his aides, he’s burning down his own house and risking regional diplomacy at a critical moment

There’s political chaos, and then there’s what’s happening in Israel.

Faced with an unfolding scandal involving two aides suspected of taking Qatari money to influence Israeli media and policy, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu isn’t conducting a housecleaning or demanding answers. Instead, as I discussed in the above TV appearance, he’s doing what President Donald Trump did in his first term, when faced with a probe into allegations of collusion with Russia: claiming “Qatargate” is no more than a politically motivated “witch hunt.”

That phrase, recycled from Trump’s attacks on former Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into the Russia allegations, is now a key pillar of Netanyahu’s strategy. It’s part of his broader war against the very institutions tasked with keeping Israeli democracy functioning: the police, prosecutors, the attorney general, the Shin Bet security service, the judiciary, and the media. All, in Netanyahu’s telling, are part of a “deep state” conspiracy to bring down a duly elected leader.

It’s Trumpism with an Israeli twist — and it’s coming at a particularly dangerous moment.

The “Qatargate” scandal involves two senior aides, Jonatan Urich and Eli Feldstein, who are under investigation for allegedly taking money from Qatar to push favorable messaging about that country — while working in the prime minister’s office. The goal appeared to be painting Qatar as a benevolent broker in the Gaza hostage negotiations, and to undermine Egypt, with whom Israel has a critical peace treaty and a sensitive border.

The charges the duo face are serious: