Golan: Oct. 7 claims are election ploy to boost Netanyahu

• Golan accused Netanyahu’s allies of spreading “treason from within” claims to divert attention from the government’s responsibility. 
• The allegations are emerging as October 7 narratives become part of the political battle ahead of the 'Israeli' election. 

Democrats Party chairman Yair Golan said Wednesday that claims linking him to prior knowledge of the Oct. 7, 2023 attack were part of a planned political campaign to help Benjamin Netanyahu ahead of ‘Israel’s’ election.

Speaking to Maariv's podcast, Golan said the coalition had systematically promoted conspiracy theories to deflect political and military accountability and target opponents.

“This is not some slip of the tongue; it’s a planned move,” Golan told Maariv.

His remarks followed Sara Netanyahu’s appearance on Channel 14, where she said that Golan had advance knowledge of Hamas’ Oct. 7 operation.

Read more: Sara Netanyahu claims opposition leader knew about Oct. 7 in advance

In response, Golan issued a 24-hour legal notice threatening a 2.5 million NIS ($680,000) defamation lawsuit unless Sara Netanyahu retracts her statement and issues a formal public apology acknowledging that Golan, like all citizens, learned of the attack when sirens sounded at 6:29 a.m. and went south using his personal weapon to rescue civilians at the Nova festival site.

"They are trying to rewrite Oct. 7 in order to erase Netanyahu's responsibility for the greatest failure in the country's history," Golan declared. 

A planned conspiracy campaign

The controversy comes amidst reports from Likud insiders indicating that Benjamin Netanyahu's political team has deliberately circulated "treason from within" narratives to shield the Prime Minister from political fallout. 

Although Netanyahu published an Instagram post late Tuesday asserting "there was no betrayal on October 7; there was a failure," Golan dismissed the post as "an attempt to minimize the damage" rather than a genuine retraction or apology.