JPost’s Zvika Klein Named as Journalist Involved in Explosive Qatargate Scandal

By: Fern Sidman

In a fast-developing political and media firestorm now known as “Qatargate,” The Jerusalem Post has confirmed that its own Editor-in-Chief, Zvika Klein, was the unnamed journalist questioned by Israeli police earlier this week as part of a widening investigation involving two senior aides to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—Yonatan Urich and Eli Feldstein.

As The Jerusalem Post first reported on Tuesday, Klein was questioned by police on Monday, and while he was not arrested, he was cautioned during his testimony, a legal status that often precedes more formal investigative steps. The police have not publicly disclosed whether Klein is currently a suspect, nor have they specified any charges. Nonetheless, his involvement has stirred intense speculation about the role of journalists in politically sensitive foreign lobbying operations.

According to the information provided in The Jerusalem Post, Klein’s name entered the spotlight after reports surfaced linking him to Feldstein and Urich, both of whom are now at the center of an investigation concerning alleged covert efforts to promote Qatar’s international image and downplay its ties to extremist groups, including Hamas. While Feldstein and Urich have been formally detained, Klein remains under a media gag order that prevents him from speaking to fellow journalists.

Other reports have said that Klein allegedly facilitated communication between Feldstein and two influential figures with ties to Qatar: Gil Birger, a well-connected Israeli businessman, and Jay Footlik, a U.S. citizen and former Clinton administration official who operated as a lobbyist for the Qatari regime.

At the heart of the controversy is Klein’s high-profile trip to Qatar in 2023, which he undertook at the direct invitation of the Qatari government, according to The Jerusalem Post. During and after this state-sponsored visit, Klein wrote a series of articles published by The Jerusalem Post, detailing his meetings with Qatari officials and offering readers a nuanced glimpse into the Gulf state’s diplomatic posture and regional ambitions.

Last month, Israeli broadcaster Channel 13 aired a report alleging that it was Eli Feldstein—now in custody—who arranged Klein’s Qatar trip, suggesting a possible nexus between Israeli political operatives and foreign state actors. In response, Klein posted on X (formerly Twitter) that he had no acquaintance with Feldstein prior to his visit to Doha. He maintained that any communication with Feldstein occurred only after his return to Israel, and even then, solely to coordinate his television appearances on Channels 12 and 13 regarding the trip.

Klein has not publicly clarified how his contact with Feldstein began, nor has he confirmed whether he knew of Feldstein’s official capacity as a Netanyahu adviser. Due to the court-imposed gag order, Klein remains unable to elaborate further, and his voice has been conspicuously absent from the recent surge of commentary surrounding the affair.

While foreign visits by journalists are not uncommon, especially in geopolitically sensitive regions, Klein’s trip has taken on new significance in light of the broader investigation into possible illicit foreign lobbying. As The Jerusalem Post report emphasized, Klein traveled to Qatar under official invitation, met with senior Qatari figures, and subsequently published coverage that shaped Israeli public discourse on the Gulf state.

Though the content of his articles for The Jerusalem Post did not constitute overt propaganda, investigators appear to be probing whether the trip—and any potential coordination surrounding it—formed part of a strategic campaign directed by Netanyahu’s aides to sanitize Qatar’s public image in Israeli and Western media.

As of this writing, there is no public evidence suggesting that Klein acted illegally or that his reporting for The Jerusalem Post was manipulated. Nonetheless, police are clearly examining the possibility that Netanyahu’s advisers may have exploited relationships with journalists—witting or unwitting—to advance Qatar’s reputation at a time when the country faced mounting scrutiny over its ties to terror financing and regional destabilization.

Netanyahu’s office has so far refused to comment on the ongoing investigation. However, opposition lawmakers wasted no time in denouncing the affair as further evidence of deep-rooted corruption at the heart of the current administration.

Yair Lapid, head of the opposition, posted on social media: “When the Prime Minister’s advisers and senior journalists are suspected of working with a foreign state that bankrolls Hamas, it’s no longer just a scandal—it’s a national security emergency.”

The Jerusalem Post has not issued a formal editorial statement on Klein’s involvement, though it has continued to provide regular updates on the investigation’s developments, maintaining transparency about its editor-in-chief’s legal status and prior engagements.

Adding to the scandal’s gravity is the apparent irony that Klein had, in years past, been a vocal critic of Qatar’s role in funding terrorism. “Those who have been here since the group began operating will surely remember that I spoke a lot about Qatar and the need to demonstrate against this dangerous country. Not Egypt, not Iran, not Hamas—Qatar,” Klein once declared in a now-resurfaced post.

Critics argue that such statements may have been part of an elaborate effort to mask the true intent of the subsequent campaign or represent a radical reversal tied to undisclosed incentives.

Feldstein and Urich remain in detention following a court order issued earlier this week, with investigators reportedly sifting through communications and financial records to determine the full scope of the alleged influence operation. According to the report in The Jerusalem Post, the judge presiding over their case cited “reasonable suspicion” that the two aides acted “with an additional suspect” to promote Qatar in a positive light while spreading negative narratives about Egypt—a longtime partner of Israel and regional rival to Qatar.

The court’s reference to an “additional suspect” has only fueled speculation, though there is no official confirmation that Klein is being investigated in that capacity.

The involvement—however peripheral—of a leading Israeli journalist has touched a nerve in a country where press freedom and political transparency are sacrosanct yet increasingly under pressure. Should further revelations tie elements of Israeli media to foreign influence campaigns, it may prompt serious reckoning within newsrooms and among the public about the ethical boundaries of journalism in an era of global political entanglement.

For now, Zvika Klein continues to serve as editor-in-chief of The Jerusalem Post, though he remains under legal restrictions that limit his ability to comment or defend himself in the court of public opinion.