Qatar Denies Claims of Interference in Israeli Election

Qatar has denied allegations that it financed efforts to influence Israel’s parliamentary election, after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party and aligned media figures accused Doha of funding Arab parties’ voter-turnout campaigns.

“We categorically deny allegations that Qatar interfered in Israel’s elections or financed activities intended to influence their outcome,” Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed Al Ansari said Thursday. He called the accusations “ridiculous and dangerous in equal measure” and said Qatar was being drawn into an internal Israeli political dispute.

The allegations emerged as partial results from Tuesday’s election indicated that Netanyahu’s bloc would fall short of a majority and that two Arab lists had won a record number of parliamentary seats. Netanyahu and coalition allies questioned the validity of the unusually high Arab-Israeli turnout and alleged that the election was being “stolen.” Arab parties rejected the claims, describing them as a coordinated attempt to undermine the legitimacy of the results.

Central Elections Committee chairman Noam Sohlberg asked the Shin Bet security agency to examine suspicions of foreign interference, including claims involving Qatari funding. However, acting committee director Dean Livine said the election had been conducted lawfully and its integrity protected. Police sources cited by Haaretz said there were no indications of fraud, while police said any suspected wrongdoing would be investigated impartially.

Qatar said it had no role in Israel’s electoral competition and would not accept attempts to use its name for domestic political purposes.