Netanyahu operated secret back channel with Hamas during 2014 Gaza war - report
Prime Minister’s Office categorically denied the allegations. “It never happened,” the statement said
Prime Minister Netanyahu reportedly maintained a secret, direct channel of communication with Hamas during Operation Protective Edge in 2014 without informing senior Israeli security officials, according to an investigation Israeli media channel Maariv.
The contacts were conducted through Israeli businessman Shlomi Fogel, a Netanyahu associate. According to the investigation, Fogel held telephone conversations over several weeks with Ghazi Hamad, who was then a senior official in the Hamas administration in the Gaza Strip.
The report claims that Netanyahu established the framework for the discussions, while Yossi Cohen, then head of Israel’s National Security Council, drafted the messages that Fogel conveyed to Hamas.
At the same time, an Israeli security delegation was in Cairo negotiating a ceasefire through Egyptian mediators. The delegation included senior military and intelligence officials, among them Yoram Cohen, who was then director of the Shin Bet security agency.
As the Cairo negotiations stalled, Israeli security officials reportedly discovered the parallel channel, which allowed Netanyahu to communicate with Hamas without involving Egypt, Qatar or another mediator.
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An unnamed security official cited in the investigation said the discovery caused “total astonishment” among the heads of Israel’s security agencies. “Jaws dropped,” the official reportedly recalled.
When questioned by security officials, Netanyahu initially denied authorizing the contacts and instructed them to tell Fogel to end the discussions, according to the report.
Fogel, however, reportedly provided evidence that he had acted with the prime minister’s approval and that the messages he delivered had been prepared by Cohen.
Hamad remains a senior Hamas official and has previously served as the group’s deputy foreign minister and as an adviser to its leadership.
In response to the report, the Prime Minister’s Office categorically denied the allegations. “It never happened,” the statement said. “Prime Minister Netanyahu never authorized any such contacts. These are false briefings by political figures seeking to damage the prime minister.”