Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blasted Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara on Monday for announcing that Yonatan Urich, the prime minister’s top adviser, was facing potential criminal proceedings, calling the action “baseless and unfounded.”
“The disgraceful announcement by the Attorney General regarding the intention to prosecute Yonatan Orich, especially at this particular time, is an unfortunate decision that raises serious questions,” the Prime Minister of Israel wrote on X.
“I am aware of the specifics, and I can say with clarity and conviction that there was no threat to national security. National security was not harmed by Yonatan. This is a ridiculous, illogical action that is not in the public interest and is meant to further a different objective,” the post continued.
The remarks came after Attorney General Miara announced pending charges against Urich ahead of a government panel hearing scheduled for Monday to consider her potential dismissal.
Reports suggest that the prosecutors alleged that Urich, together with Eli Feldstein, a former military spokesman for Netanyahu, leaked classified Israel Defence Forces (IDF) documents to the press, a case that has embroiled the Prime Minister’s Office.
“This was information classified at the highest possible level that was obtained through secret intelligence means, and Urich, by exposing it, may have endangered state security and lives,” the Attorney General’s Office said in a statement to the press.
“The release of classified information by Urich and Feldstein was intended, among other things, to influence public opinion regarding the Prime Minister, and to shift the discourse at the time regarding the murder of the six hostages in August 2024,” the statement continued.
Urich “denies all the allegations against him,” according to his attorneys Amit Hadad and Noa Milstein, who also claimed that he “never possessed and never transmitted a classified document and definitely didn’t harm national security.” They stated that Urich’s “innocence will be proven beyond doubt” and referred to the attorney general’s declaration as “baseless” that “comes at a timing that isn’t coincidental.”
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