Israel's recently appointed UK ambassador banned from leaving state Submitted by Imran Mulla on Mon, 01/12/2026 - 10:50 Tzachi Braverman, who is Netanyahu's chief of staff, was detained and questioned by Israeli police on Sunday over leaks of classified military information Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu listens to Tzachi Braverman at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting at his Jerusalem office on 17 November 2019 (AFP) Off The recently appointed Israeli ambassador to Britain is unable to leave the country after being questioned by Israeli police on suspicion of obstructing an investigation into the leak of a classified military document. Tzachi Braverman, who is Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's chief of staff and was recently appointed the next ambassador to Britain, was on Sunday detained and questioned by police. Netanyahu's aides have been accused of leaking classified information to support the prime minister's position during the Gaza war in September 2024. Last month, a former spokesman for Netanyahu, Eliezer Feldstein, claimed Braverman told him in 2024 that he could "shut down" the investigation into the leak. The prime minister's office and Braverman both denied this and accused Feldstein of lying. After he was released following a day of questioning on Sunday, Braverman was banned from having contact with the prime minister's office - and from leaving Israel for 30 days. Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party said on Sunday that the move was "nothing more than a continuation of the campaign of persecution against the prime minister and his team". 'Extreme and exceptional' On Monday morning Braverman's lawyers filed an appeal against the conditions imposed on him, claiming they were "extreme and exceptional". The lawyers said : "He is at the end of his term, when he was supposed to take up the position of Israel's ambassador to Britain in the near future... these conditions even thwart the date of his taking up the position of ambassador." There is currently no Israeli ambassador in London after Tzipi Hotovely, who had been in the role since August 2020, finished her term last September. Israel planning renewed Gaza offensive in March, report says Read More » Braverman was questioned over the leaking in 2024 of a document purportedly by Hamas, which suggested the group did not want to release Israeli captives and end the war. Critics claimed the leak was designed to increase public support for Netanyahu's negotiating positions. Feldstein, a suspect in the case, claimed publicly last month that Braverman told him he could shut down an investigation into the leak. Afterwards, opposition leader Yair Lapid urged the suspension of Braverman's appointment as ambassador to Britain. But Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said such a move would be "inconsistent with fundamental values ​​of human and civil rights and the right to a fair trial". Braverman was also questioned by the police last year on suspicion of altering the stated time when Netanyahu first gave instructions on how to respond to the Hamas attack on 7 October 20203. Both he and Netanyahu's office have denied the accusations. UK Politics News Post Date Override 0 Update Date Mon, 05/04/2020 - 21:19 Update Date Override 0