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Türkiye on Thursday rejected claims that it interfered in Israel’s election as "completely baseless," saying they were part of a deliberate disinformation campaign aimed at manipulating public opinion.
The denial by the Presidential Communications Directorate’s Center for Countering Disinformation (DMM) came after Yair Netanyahu, son of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, claimed that Türkiye, Qatar and Arab states had funded efforts to boost Arab turnout in Israel’s election.
"Claims in some international media outlets and on social media platforms that ‘Türkiye interfered in the elections in Israel’ are completely baseless," the DMM said in a statement on X.
"These claims are part of a deliberate and open disinformation campaign aimed at manipulating public opinion. The public is strongly urged not to give credit to such untrue news and claims aimed at misleading the public," it said.
"Wow! Qatar, Türkiye and Arab states poured millions of dollars into the elections in Israel to encourage voting in the Arab sector in order to topple Netanyahu from the premiership! This is the most serious affair in the history of the State of Israel!" Yair Netanyahu wrote on X.
"The elections in Israel were stolen by Qatar, Türkiye and Arab states!!!" he added.
Israel’s Central Elections Committee chairman, Justice Noam Sohlberg, asked the Shin Bet to investigate suspected foreign funding of the election. His letter did not name any country, but Israeli media reported the suspicions centered on Qatar.
Qatar categorically denied the accusations. "These accusations are ridiculous and dangerous in equal measure," Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari said.
Netanyahu’s bloc has pressed unproven accusations against Arab parties, and Likud declared, "Israel’s elections have been stolen!" Government officials offered no evidence.
United Arab List (Ra’am) leader Mansour Abbas said his party had "no connection" to the allegations and welcomed an investigation.
President Isaac Herzog called for a probe but cautioned against stigmatizing the entire Arab community, which voted at unprecedented rates.
Democrats leader Yair Golan said Netanyahu is "trying to challenge the election results through an ugly delegitimisation campaign against the will of the people, and against the Arab public in particular."
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