The new case being investigated regarding Qatari involvement in Israel’s election didn’t start in recent weeks. The Gulf emirate has been spreading anti-Israel messages for years, and election interference may be the cherry on top. If the allegations prove true, there’s one man who most likely orchestrated the plan—and he’s already betrayed Israel before.
Azmi Bishara, an Arab Christian who served as a Knesset member for the Balad party from 1996 to 2007, was suspected during the Second Lebanon War (2006) of maintaining contact with Hezbollah agents, passing information on strategic targets in Israel and recommendations on missile ranges in exchange for money. Bishara denied the accusations, claimed political persecution, then resigned, fled the country and settled in Qatar. Today he operates from Doha as director of the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies, chairman of the board of trustees of the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, and an influential figure in circles close to the Emir of Qatar.
3+Since fleeing Israel, he has worked for the ‘Palestinian’ cause and taken revenge on Israel in every way possible. Bishara transformed from an internal political tool in Israel (suspected of aiding the enemy during wartime) into an intellectual and regional mediator influencing narratives, institutions and policy against Israel. His activities combine research, media and diplomatic influence, leveraging his position in Qatar to advance positions that undermine Israeli legitimacy and strengthen the ‘Palestinian’ and Arab side.
Bishara was also involved in establishing the media outlet Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, which includes a newspaper, websites and a TV channel funded by Qatar that serve as a platform for harsh criticism of Israel, promoting anti-Israel positions and giving a stage to figures from Hamas and other organizations. The former Knesset member is essentially part of an “incitement empire” spreading narratives against Israel and strengthening Hamas’s agenda.
3+In frequent interviews, Bishara presents Israeli policy as ‘genocide in Gaza’, strongly opposes Arab-Israeli normalization (including warnings to Syria about giving up the Golan), claims Israel is looking for “clients” not allies, and calls for establishing a unified PLO including Hamas to thwart Israeli plans for “the day after.”
He describes Israel as a power trying to reshape the region that is exploiting October 7 to expand control, and warns against Israeli hegemony in the Levant (the region of Israel, Syria, Jordan and Lebanon) without a decisive Arab response. In recent years he has continued to speak out on Israeli elections (calling for increased Arab voting against Netanyahu), regional wars, and U.S. policy under Trump. He has published books on ‘Palestine’, the Arab state and democratic transitions that strengthen the theoretical framework of his criticism.
3+Thanks to his status and proximity to Qatar’s ruling family, he dictates to the Qataris his vision and operates against Israel from a pan-Arabist perspective he champions, mixed with a flavor of revenge. Today Bishara heads two major academic and research institutions in Doha:
1. Doha Institute for Graduate Studies: An academic institution offering advanced degrees (master’s and doctorate) in social sciences, humanities and public administration. Bishara serves as chairman of the institute’s board of trustees.
2. Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies (ACRPS): A prominent think tank in the Arab world that Bishara founded and serves as general director.
In addition, it’s important to remember that on September 9, 2025, Israeli Air Force jets struck a residential compound in the heart of Doha. The target was the elimination of Hamas’s top leadership, including Khalil al-Hayya. The leaders survived, but six people were killed, including a Qatari security officer. For the first time in history, Israel struck directly on the territory of a Gulf state that had supposedly served as a key mediator between Israel and Hamas. Qatar called the strike a blatant violation of its sovereignty and “state terrorism.”
3+It’s possible that the strike, in addition to Bishara, raised Qatar’s desire for revenge. And from their perspective, seeing Arab voter turnout break records and Arab parties win 19 seats, while Netanyahu’s bloc remained with only 53 seats without a majority—that’s the ultimate revenge.
The motivation and spirit of revenge of Qatar and Bishara are clear. The Doha strike damaged Qatar’s prestige as a credible mediator and its sovereignty, and if the Shin Bet’s suspicions are confirmed—it will be possible to say that instead of a direct military response, Doha chose a softer weapon: influencing Israel’s political composition through the Arab sector. Strengthening the Arab parties weakens the right-wing camp, makes forming a stable government harder, and could damage Israeli policy toward Hamas and Gaza. Qatar, for its part, denies it. Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari called the accusations “ridiculous and dangerous” and claimed it was a disinformation campaign—but the denial doesn’t change the facts.
The Doha strike was a tactical move; election interference is a strategic move. Qatar hasn’t forgotten the attack on its capital, and it’s working to weaken those who struck it from within. But the Shin Bet investigation will determine whether there was actually foreign interference or not. As for Azmi Bishara, he continues to take revenge on Israel through research institutes, sowing hatred of Israel among Arab leaders and their children who study at institutions under his management. Bishara’s exploits over these years have been public, known and even publicized, but unfortunately the State of Israel, the Shin Bet and the Mossad fell asleep on watch.