On the morning of March 31, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived at the District Court in Tel Aviv for the 20th day of his testimony in the historic corruption trial against him. Unexpectedly, he left the witness stand after being called in to testify in the Qatargate scandal rocking Israel’s establishment, N12 reported.

This development came after Ynet reported that two suspects in the Qatargate scandal had been arrested and detained at the Lahav 433 police headquarters. They are Yonatan Urich and Eli Feldstein, top aides to Netanyahu. Maariv reported that Urich was arrested by the police, while Feldstein, who was already under house arrest, was summoned to the police headquarters. Additionally, an unnamed journalist was also allegedly called in for questioning.

While the Qatargate investigation is under gag order until April 10, multiple Israeli news outlets have explained that the scandal involves top aides to Netanyahu, who were allegedly paid by Qatar while handling hostage negotiations with Hamas. Among the allegations are bribery, money laundering, breach of trust and tax offences.

Israeli journalist Ben Caspit revealed, as per The Jerusalem Post, that the salary of Netanyahu’s spokesperson had been funded by Qatar following the attacks on October 7, 2023.

As Israel’s war against Hamas and Iran’s alleged proxies continues, with the Houthis in Yemen continuing to fire missiles at Israeli territory amid renewed tension with Lebanon, Netanyahu also appears to be fighting a war at home.

Netanyahu’s decision to launch a major aerial offensive against Hamas earlier this month deeply divided Israeli society. While those in favour justified the strikes as being the only way to pressure Hamas to release the remaining hostages being held captive in Gaza given the previous fragile deal, some family members of Israeli hostages, as well as released hostages, expressed their disapproval of the move, favouring the resumption of a diplomatic approach.

The conflict aside, Netanyahu has found himself in the crosshairs in a political sense as well. His cabinet moved to file a motion of no confidence against Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, the very same figure who summoned the prime minister to testify in the Qatargate investigation.

This came after Netanyahu dismissed previous Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar from his post, sparking widespread public demonstrations. He has since replaced Bar with former Israeli naval chief Vice-Admiral Eli Sharvit.

Although Netanyahu has proved to be a tactful politician and strategic thinker during his 18 years as Israeli Prime Minister, it is becoming increasingly difficult to see a way forward for him given the political enemies he has amassed as well as the public scrutiny he continues to face, particularly after the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel.

It appears as if the only way for him to ensure his political survival is by solidifying his public support, an endeavour in which his new recruits, including Sharvit and new IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, may play a vital role. Of course, if Netanyahu makes further political missteps, his political struggle might be lost regardless of the efforts of his new leadership recruits.