Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is being sued for defamation by his former counterintelligence chief Ronen Bar, whom he accused of committing "failures and crimes" in the hours preceding the October 7 attacks.

In a statement released on Monday (28 September), the ex-head of Israel's Shin Bet said that "Netanyahu launched an unbridled incitement campaign disconnected from reality. As evidence of warnings he received begins to surface, he is trying to divert the fire." 

Bar also demanded the full release of testimonies and documents related to information provided to the prime minister before October 7, including the disclosure of Netanyahu's schedule of meetings with the defense establishment and foreign officials.

As Netanyahu has immunity by virtue of his position, it is unclear whether such a lawsuit will reach a court hearing.

However the clash is the latest chapter in a three-year battle between the two men over who knew what in the lead up to the Hamas–led operation, with each accusing the other of withholding vital security information that could have changed the outcome of the attacks which left 1,200 dead and sparked the war in Gaza.

Fallout from bombshell Haaretz report

While unproven rumours regarding the prime minister's prior knowledge have swirled for years, a recent wave of allegations has been instigated by a report released earlier this month by Israeli paper Haaretz. 

The report claimed that Netanyahu had been contacted by UAE leader Mohamed bin Zayed, who urged the Israeli premier to "be ready" for a major operation being planned by Hamas-chief Yahya Sinwar, a warning that Haaretz says fell on deaf ears. 

Netanyahu has vehemently denied the claims, and has issued a libel lawsuit against Haaretz, who have pledged to fight back.

He has also ordered a libel suit to be filed following a report in The Wall Street Journal that claimed Abbas Kamel, the then head of Egyptian intelligence, reached out to Netanyahu regarding a looming attack in early October 2023. 

On Monday (September 28), the story spiralled further as Haaretz revealed that Netanyahu had secretly flown to the UAE to meet with bin Zayed. 

They claim that the reunion, in wake of their own exposé, was focused on trying to get bin Zayed to publicly reject the allegations that Netanyahu was forewarned. 

Netanyahu has confirmed that he met with bin Zayed in the UAE, but has denied that it was to refute Haaretz's report, instead saying that the meeting was attended by several other Israeli defense officials. 

The prime minister's movements were also flagged by Israel news programme Channel 12, who has since been accused by Shin Bet of endangering Netanyahu by reporting on his whereabouts.

Election build-up

The backdrop to these escalating claims is the Israeli legislative elections, due to be held at the end of October, in which most opinion polls predict Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party will lose around a third of its parliamentary seats. 

Yet while "Netanyahu does not surrender" remains the official slogan of Likud, it appears their chief is in the last throes of his bid for a fourth term as prime minister.

Across the election build-up, Netanyahu has faced heavy criticism from across the political spectrum by opposition leaders who say he has prioritized political survival over Israel’s security. 

He is also battling accusations of having made Israel a pariah state through his handling of military and diplomatic affairs, underscored at the United Nations General Assembly last week when over 100 delegates from nearly 70 countries walked out as Netanyahu took to the stand to vindicate his country's actions in Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon and Syria to name a few. 

On Wednesday 23 September, a petition pushed through by the Likud party to ban Arab parties from the elections was passed by Israel’s Central Elections Committee. 

Though the ban is likely to be overturned by the Supreme Court, it came as polls indicated that Arab parties could win up to 12 seats in the elections, while a Netanyahu coalition would struggle to reach the 61 seats required to form a majority.  

Though Netanyahu's election campaign continues to run off themes of Arab fearmongering and anti-Palestinian unity, winning an election on such rhetoric could be a tall order if recent polling is to go by. 

Centrist Gadi Eisenkot, a ​former military chief who ⁠lost his son serving in Gaza and heads the newly-formed Yashar party, was leading the polls on Sunday 27 September, with Netanyahu's Likud bloc and the opposition bloc tied at 52 seats each.

Eisenkot has also hit out at Netanyahu, saying on Sunday that the Israeli premier had “clearly and unequivocally betrayed the public’s trust and his duty” over October 7.

While polls have been wrong before, the lawsuit-laden run-up to this election has scarcely improved Netanyahu's chances of a fourth term.