{"id":53646,"date":"2025-10-26T13:01:35","date_gmt":"2025-10-26T17:01:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/in-qatargate-twist-court-orders-police-to-hand-back-netanyahu-aides-phones\/26\/10\/2025\/"},"modified":"2025-10-26T13:01:35","modified_gmt":"2025-10-26T17:01:35","slug":"in-qatargate-twist-court-orders-police-to-hand-back-netanyahu-aides-phones","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/in-qatargate-twist-court-orders-police-to-hand-back-netanyahu-aides-phones\/26\/10\/2025\/","title":{"rendered":"In \u2018Qatargate\u2019 twist, court orders police to hand back Netanyahu aide\u2019s phones"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\n<\/p>\n<div data-article-body=\"true\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Judge Menahem Mizrahi ruled police must return phones seized from Netanyahu aide Yonatan Urich in the ongoing \u201cQatargate\u201d investigation.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Rishon Lezion Magistrate&#8217;s Court Judge Menahem Mizrahi ordered Israel Police to return to \u201cQatargate\u201d suspect Yonatan Urich the cell phones belonging to him that authorities are holding in the context of the investigation into Qatari influences over figures close to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Police were expected to appeal the decision to the Lod District Court.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">At a hearing on the matter on Sunday, investigators informed the court that \u201cextraction and hacking failed for two, while the model of the third is impenetrable.\u201d Police had asked for a 180-day extension on the seizure of the devices.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Asked by Mizrahi why police still required possession over the phones if they aren&#8217;t penetrable, police representatives responded that its hacking software is being updated, and that other impenetrable devices cracked open in the past, once the software had been updated.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Mizrahi denied the police&#8217;s request to keep the phones, calling the decision, \u201cThe easiest one I&#8217;ve ever made,\u201d and added, scathingly, that he had informed state representatives that he wouldn&#8217;t consider a request without confidential evidentiary backing, which was the format of the Sunday request.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The Sunday hearing followed a request by Israel Police last month to extend the seizure of the devices.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p>Yonatan Urich who was arrested in the so-called Qatargate investigation arrives for a court hearing the court in Lod, August 19, 2025. (credit: Jonathan Shaul\/Flash90)<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The \u201cQatargate\u201d affair centers on claims that Urich, an aide to Netanyahu, and El Feldstein, the former military spokesman for the Prime Minister&#8217;s Office, promoted Qatar&#8217;s interests during their tenure in the PMO. Per reports, Feldstein received payments from an Israeli businessman who acted as an intermediary between Qatar and Israel. Feldstein&#8217;s attorneys have stated that the funds were for strategic and communication services provided to Netanyahu&#8217;s office, and that Feldstein was unaware of any direct connection to Qatar.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"mb-4 text-lg font-bold\">Concerns about conflicts of interest<\/h3>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Both Feldstein and Urich were detained and questioned by authorities in March. Investigations revealed that a company working on behalf of Qatar had contacted Urich to enhance Qatar&#8217;s image, particularly regarding hostage negotiations &#8211; as Qatar is a mediator between Israel and Hamas &#8211; and subsequently made payments to Feldstein. The suspects are facing charges related to contact with a foreign agent, money laundering, and breach of trust<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The investigation has raised significant concerns about conflicts of interest and the integrity of public office, particularly regarding transparency in financial dealings and the influence of foreign entities on Israeli domestic affairs.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Feldstein and Urich were arrested and later released to house arrest under restrictive conditions. Recently, the Lod District Court overturned the decision of the Magistrate\u2019s Court, ruling that Urich must remain barred from working with Netanyahu under the restrictive conditions imposed on him. Another suspect is Netanyahu\u2019s former advisor, Israel Einhorn.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.yahoo.com\/news\/articles\/qatargate-twist-court-orders-police-164100161.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Judge Menahem Mizrahi ruled police must return phones seized from Netanyahu aide Yonatan Urich in the ongoing &ldquo;Qatargate&rdquo; investigation. Rishon Lezion Magistrate&rsquo;s<br \/><button class=\"read-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/in-qatargate-twist-court-orders-police-to-hand-back-netanyahu-aides-phones\/26\/10\/2025\/\">Read More &rsaquo;<\/a><\/button><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":53647,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/jerusalem_post_articles_818\/d35dd0a5b5473d878760c1dfcad39bd9","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53646"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=53646"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53646\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/53647"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=53646"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=53646"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=53646"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}