BySARAH BEN-NUNMAY 26, 2026 11:49Updated: MAY 26, 2026 16:57Tzachi Braverman, the Prime Minister’s Office chief of staff and ambassador-designate to the United Kingdom, will be summoned for a pre-indictment hearing on suspicion of fraud, breach of trust, and obstruction of justice, the State Attorney’s Office announced on Tuesday.Attorney-General Gali Baharav-Miara and State Attorney Amit Aisman are considering indicting Braverman, pending a hearing, over his alleged conduct after learning in October 2024 that a covert investigation was underway into the leak of highly classified intelligence to the German daily Bild.Braverman’s attorneys, Jacques Chen and Prof. Yaniv Vaki, called the decision “wrong” and said it “continues the enormous injustice already caused to Mr. Braverman.”“The letter of suspicion itself makes clear that the decision rests on Feldstein’s testimony,” they said. “Feldstein is a dishonest witness driven by ulterior motives. It is astonishing that the prosecution – which itself indicted him while rejecting his many baseless accounts and false claims – is now relying on him as a credible witness, even though here, too, he gave multiple contradictory and false versions.”According to the prosecution, Braverman learned, as part of his role, that authorities were secretly investigating the transfer of a raw intelligence item classified as top secret and intended for a limited circle of those with clearance. The intelligence, which was obtained through a classified intelligence tool, was later passed to Bild, where a significant portion of it was published.Prime Minister's Office Chief of Staff Tzachi Braverman pictured at Tel Aviv District Court, December 18, 2024; illustrative. (credit: MIRIAM ALSTER/FLASH90)Shortly after learning of the investigation, Braverman allegedly asked Eli Feldstein, who served as a media adviser to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, to urgently meet him at the Kirya military headquarters in Tel Aviv.The two met in the middle of the night in Feldstein’s car in the Kirya parking lot, according to the prosecution. Braverman allegedly read Feldstein several names written on a piece of paper, including that of IDF reservist Ari Rosenfeld, and asked Feldstein whether he knew any of them.Braverman then allegedly told Feldstein that an investigation was underway and asked him: “Is this connected to you? Is this connected to us? Because, if so, I can shut it down.”Feldstein denied any connection, and the two parted ways, the prosecution said.Leaked article published days after hostage bodies recoveredThe Bild article was published on September 6, 2024, days after the bodies of six Israeli hostages murdered by Hamas in Gaza were recovered: Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Eden Yerushalmi, Carmel Gat, Almog Sarusi, Ori Danino, and Alex Lobanov.Public outrage was high at the time, and the document appeared to support Netanyahu’s argument that Hamas was hardening its position in hostage negotiations, narrowing the case for diplomacy and bolstering the argument for continued military pressure.The investigation later became public with the arrests of Feldstein and Rosenfeld, who were eventually indicted in what became known as the classified-documents case, or the Bild case. The indictment accuses Rosenfeld of passing secret intelligence to Feldstein, and Feldstein of working with others to transfer it for publication in Bild.The case has since moved through several court tracks, including litigation over detention conditions, access to investigative materials, and the scope of the proceedings.The affair has also widened around Netanyahu’s circle. Netanyahu’s adviser, Yonatan Urich, was summoned to a pre-indictment hearing in the Bild affair, with prosecutors considering security offenses related to the alleged handling of classified material. Courts have repeatedly imposed, extended, and later eased restrictive conditions on him, including bans connected to work at the PMO, contact with figures tied to the investigation, and travel abroad.The Braverman branch developed later, after Feldstein’s televised interview led investigators to examine the alleged midnight meeting. Parts of the affair were later cleared for publication, revealing suspicions that Braverman had used information he obtained in his official role after learning of the covert investigation.Qatargate case unfolding alongside Bild leak affairThe Braverman affair is one branch of the broader classified-documents scandal that has surrounded Netanyahu’s aides. It has also unfolded alongside the separate but overlapping “Qatargate” investigation, in which Feldstein and Urich were arrested in March 2025 on suspicion of security and financial offenses connected to alleged work on behalf of Qatar while they were close to the Prime Minister’s Office.That case centers on suspicions that Netanyahu aides promoted Qatari interests in Israel while Qatar was serving as a central mediator in hostage negotiations. Netanyahu has denied wrongdoing and has not been named as a suspect.Braverman has also consistently denied wrongdoing.Follow us on Google