A new investigative report published Friday in The New York Times revealed that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shared classified information about the strike on Iran with MK Moshe Gafni three days before it was carried out.
Netanyahu reportedly invited MK Gafni to the Kirya compound on June 9, despite the latter lacking security clearance, and informed him of the impending operation. The disclosure came against the backdrop of threats by the haredi parties to topple the government over the IDF draft law.
According to the report, six months after the October 7 massacre, Netanyahu was willing to halt the war and reach a compromise with Hamas. In April 2024, he dispatched an envoy to meet with Egyptian mediators.
During a cabinet meeting, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich stated that he had heard rumors of a potential deal. “I want you to know that if you advance a capitulation agreement in Gaza, you no longer have a government. The government is finished,” Smotrich warned Netanyahu. Netanyahu responded, “No, no, that’s not going to happen.”
The investigation also noted that on the morning of October 7, at 6:29 a.m., Netanyahu was awakened by a WhatsApp message from a senior IDF officer informing him that Hamas had launched a barrage of rockets. Minutes later, during a secure and documented call, Netanyahu ordered the assassination of Hamas leadership. In that conversation, he asked, “Can we take down their leadership?” When the IDF Chief of Staff updated him about strikes on 1,000 targets in Gaza, Netanyahu replied, “A thousand? I want five thousand.”