Could a leak of Israeli military documents jeopardize the hostages' chances of return? The Families Forum, the main association of relatives of hostages held captive in the Gaza Strip, demanded on Monday that all light be shed on the matter of leaked documents which is affecting the Israeli Prime Minister. This Forum brings together the majority of the families of the 97 hostages still captive in Gaza.
“The (hostage) families demand an investigation into all those involved in suspected sabotage and undermining state security. Such action in general and particularly during war endangers the hostages, compromises their chances of return and abandons them with the risk of being killed by Hamas terrorists,” the Forum said in a statement.
On Sunday, an Israeli court announced that a former spokesperson for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had been arrested for releasing confidential military documents to the press without authorization, which could have undermined an agreement on the release of the hostages.
Four people, including members of the Israeli security apparatus and Eliezer Feldstein, a former aide to the Prime Minister, are currently in detention, said the Rishon LeZion court (center). An investigation was opened by the Shin Bet, the domestic intelligence services, and the army after the publication in September of articles in the foreign press, based on confidential military documents.
One detailed an alleged plan by Yahya Sinouar, the former political leader of Hamas, to flee the Gaza Strip with the hostages to Egypt through the “Philadelphia Corridor,” a buffer zone along the border. The other was based on notes presented as coming from the Hamas leadership on its leader's strategy to thwart negotiations on the release of the hostages.
This information, partly false, would have, according to the court, “undermined the ability of the security agencies to achieve the objective of freeing the hostages”, according to the court, which issued a notice of censorship on a large part of the investigation.
