Israel PM’s wife shares conspiracy theory about opposition figure

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's wife, Sara Netanyahu, has made a controversial claim alleging that an opposition figure was aware of the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel before it transpired. This assertion, made during a television interview on Monday evening, has sparked outrage within Israel's opposition parties.

In the interview, Sara Netanyahu accused Yair Golan, the former deputy military chief of staff and head of the centre-left Democrats party, of being "already dressed and ready" at dawn on the day of the attack, while others were unaware, including the prime minister himself. Sara Netanyahu's remarks, broadcast on Israel's Channel 14, which is closely aligned with the government, have been strongly condemned by Golan's party, who described them as "vile and deceitful."

Gadi Eisenkot, a former army chief and a frontrunner to challenge Netanyahu, called Sara Netanyahu's accusations a "mad conspiracy of betrayal" intended to stoke hatred and perpetuate Netanyahu's rule. The comments reflect the deep political polarization in Israel ahead of the upcoming elections on October 27. A recent poll conducted for Channel 13 in August found that 40% of Israelis, and 63% of voters for the current right-wing coalition, believe that internal treason led to the Oct 7 attack, which resulted in the deaths of 1,221 people.

Netanyahu has blamed security officials for not waking him up during the attack, which also saw the taking of 251 hostages, 44 of whom were killed. Israel has since launched a massive offensive in Gaza, resulting in the deaths of at least 73,454 people, according to Hamas authority-operated Palestinian health ministry figures.