(January 11, 2026)

In November 2024, the Israeli courts lifted a gag order and identified Mr. Feldstein, who was working as a military affairs spokesman for Mr. Netanyahu, as one of the suspects in the case involving the stealing, illegal holding and leaking of a classified military document to a German newspaper, Bild.

Handwritten in Arabic, the document, obtained from Gaza, appeared to lay out Hamas’s plan for psychological warfare against Israel, claiming that Hamas was in no rush to reach a deal to release hostages or to end the war. Some of the messaging aligned with Mr. Netanyahu’s own approach.

Critics said the Bild article based on the leak appeared to be part of a deliberate effort by the prime minister or his loyalists to weaken the domestic campaign for the hostages’ release and influence Israeli public opinion in favor of Mr. Netanyahu’s negotiating positions.