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Former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu military secretary Avi Gil has accused the Prime Minister’s Office of falsifying records related to the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks, including changing the recorded time of a telephone call, Ynet reported Thursday, citing an interview with Israel’s Channel 12.
Gil, 54, who served in the post from July 2021 to May 2024, said a stenographer approached him in January 2024 and told him Netanyahu’s chief of staff had instructed her to change the time of a four-minute call from 6:40 a.m. to 6:29 a.m. local time.
“She told me, ‘I’m not allowed to change it. The computer shows and says 6:40 to 6:44,’” Gil said, alleging that the head of Netanyahu’s office sought to manipulate telephone records.
Gil said he documented the stenographer’s account in a handwritten note to the attorney general and recommended that any future commission of inquiry obtain original recordings rather than rely only on transcripts. “This is changing a transcript, changing the truth,” he said.
Gil says Gaza operation recommendations were rejected
Gil also said Israeli security officials had repeatedly recommended targeted military operations in the Gaza Strip before Oct. 7, but that political leaders did not accept those recommendations.
He confirmed an earlier report that then-Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar warned Netanyahu in July 2023 that Israel faced the danger of war. Gil said the warning was not a specific alert about an imminent attack from Gaza.
“Was there a specific, focused warning from Gaza? Absolutely not,” Gil said. He also said information available during the night before the attacks had repeatedly been described as “routine” and did not indicate an immediate emergency requiring Netanyahu to be woken.
Gil said he could not confirm reports that Netanyahu had received warnings from Egypt or the United Arab Emirates before Oct. 7, adding that he was not in the office on dates associated with the reported Emirati contact.
Netanyahu rejects allegations
Netanyahu denied the accusations and blamed Gil for failures surrounding the Oct. 7 attacks. The dispute comes as campaigning intensifies ahead of Israel’s Oct. 27 general election.
More than 74,000 Palestinians have been killed and over 175,000 injured in Israel’s war in Gaza since October 2023, according to Palestinian figures. The source report also said 90% of the enclave’s infrastructure had been destroyed.
The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu in November 2024 on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip.
