Fugitive Israeli political consultant Yisrael “Srulik” Einhorn may have gained valuable political breathing space in Serbia after reports emerged that Israel’s Shin Bet security service is softening its position on the so called “Qatargate” affair, a scandal that has engulfed several close associates of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
According to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz today, the revised Shin Bet assessment may weaken the most serious allegations linked to the affair by stepping back from claims that Netanyahu associates endangered Israeli national security. The shift could reduce political and legal pressure surrounding figures such as Einhorn, who continues living openly in Belgrade while advising Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić.
The development comes at a sensitive moment for Serbia and Israel, whose military, political and commercial relationship has deepened dramatically over the past two years. At the centre of that relationship sits Einhorn himself, a former Netanyahu election strategist accused in multiple Israeli scandals who has become deeply embedded inside Vučić’s political orbit while Serbia expands weapons exports and drone cooperation with Israel.
Shin Bet reportedly retreats from “national security” assessment
According to a report published by Haaretz, the Shin Bet is preparing an opinion that no longer concludes that the actions of Netanyahu aides involved in the Qatargate affair endangered Israeli national security.
The report says the revised assessment could spare Netanyahu associates from facing the gravest security related charges and instead shift the focus toward offences such as bribery, fraud, breach of trust and money laundering.
One law enforcement source quoted by Haaretz reportedly described the new Shin Bet position as “completely watered down,” saying the agency had “dropped the security implications by several levels.”
Another unnamed security official told the paper:
“The only thing that changed was the person at the top of the Shin Bet.”
The remarks point to growing divisions inside Israel’s security establishment over how aggressively the Qatargate affair should be pursued.
Former Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar had reportedly viewed the affair as involving “the gravest suspicions of severe harm to state security.”
The affair centres on allegations that Netanyahu associates, including Einhorn, Jonatan Urich and Eli Feldstein, accepted money linked to Qatar in order to conduct a pro Qatar influence campaign during Israel’s war in Gaza. Critics argued the alleged campaign was particularly sensitive because Qatar maintained close ties with Hamas while simultaneously mediating hostage negotiations.
Fugitive in Israel while advising Serbia’s president
For Einhorn, the Shin Bet’s apparent retreat could prove politically and legally significant.
The former Netanyahu campaign strategist was formally declared a fugitive by Israeli police in January 2026 after failing to return to Israel for questioning over the Qatargate affair and the separate “Bibileaks” scandal involving alleged classified document leaks.
Yet while Israeli authorities sought to question him, Einhorn remained in Belgrade, where he has reportedly become a close adviser to Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić.
Reporting by the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network previously detailed how Einhorn has been living in the Serbian capital for at least a year and advising Vučić since approximately 2020. He operates through a consultancy firm called Insight Partners, registered at the same address as the pro government Institute for Politics and Economy of Southeast Europe, known as IPESE. Company filings reportedly showed the consultancy generated $2.3 million in revenue during 2024.
The investigation also revealed that Israeli officials travelled to Serbia in July 2025 to interrogate Einhorn directly in Belgrade.
According to the report, two Israeli investigators questioned him over three days at Serbia’s Supreme Public Prosecutor’s Office while Serbian authorities insisted the proceedings remain confidential. Israeli prosecutors later admitted they had been unable to extradite him from Serbia.
The new Haaretz revelations may now weaken the urgency behind any future extradition effort.
If the Shin Bet formally abandons the argument that Netanyahu aides endangered Israeli national security, the political rationale for aggressively pursuing suspects abroad may diminish considerably.
Serbia’s expanding military alliance with Israel
The developments surrounding Einhorn are unfolding alongside a rapidly expanding strategic alliance between Serbia and Israel.
Reporting linking Einhorn to Vučić’s government detailed how Serbia has become one of Israel’s most important European military partners during the Gaza war.
Official Serbian trade figures cited in the report showed arms exports to Israel rising from approximately €3 million in 2023 to €114 million in 2025, representing a forty two fold increase in just two years.
Flight tracking data reportedly documented at least 38 cargo flights carrying weapons from Serbia to Israel’s Nevatim air base during 2025 alone, with a further 17 ammunition flights recorded during the first three months of 2026.
The relationship has also expanded into joint weapons manufacturing.
According to documents cited in the investigation, Israel’s Elbit Systems and Serbia’s state arms company Yugoimport SDPR are establishing a new drone factory in Šimanovci, west of Belgrade. Elbit will reportedly hold a controlling 51 percent stake while SDPR owns 49 percent.
The factory is expected to manufacture both short range armed drones and advanced long range reconnaissance and combat UAVs derived from Israeli drone technology.
One source familiar with the project described the long range system as:
“The crown of the entire project.”
Although Einhorn is not publicly listed as an executive in the venture, the investigation portrays him as one of the key intermediaries connecting Vučić’s Serbia with Netanyahu’s Israel. It alleges he helped facilitate broader military and political cooperation between the two states, including lobbying efforts and logistical routes for ammunition exports during the Gaza war.
Vučić openly embraces the Israeli relationship
Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić has publicly defended the growing alliance with Israel despite mounting international criticism over the Gaza war.
In April 2026, Vučić confirmed Serbia would jointly manufacture combat drones with Israel.
“We don’t know how to make drones as Israel does. We will be doing it together.”
He also openly acknowledged that Serbia’s military trade with Israel would continue uninterrupted.
“They sell weapons to us, we sell weapons to them and this will continue.”
Critics argue the relationship exposes Serbia to growing legal and reputational risks.
United Nations Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese, whose report accused companies such as Elbit Systems of profiting from what she described as an “economy of genocide,” publicly criticised Serbia in March 2026 for collaborating with Israel “without shame.”
Institutional divisions inside Israel may benefit Einhorn
The latest Haaretz report suggests the atmosphere inside Israel itself may now be shifting in Einhorn’s favour.
The affair increasingly appears less like a unified national security prosecution and more like a political and institutional struggle inside Israel’s intelligence establishment.
Former Mossad chief David Barnea has also reportedly argued that the alleged Qatari connections did not appear to have harmed Israeli national security, although he stressed that corruption allegations remained separate matters.
That fragmentation could prove crucial for Einhorn.
The allegations against him have not disappeared. He still faces accusations tied to influence operations, alleged classified document leaks and witness intimidation.
Yet as Israel’s security establishment grows increasingly divided over whether Qatargate constituted a genuine national security threat, the political momentum behind aggressively pursuing suspects abroad may weaken.
For now, Einhorn remains in Belgrade, operating from an upmarket residential area while Serbia and Israel deepen one of the most strategically controversial partnerships in Europe.
The cargo flights continue and the drone factory moves closer to production while Israeli investigators remain unable to bring him home.
The man once described by Israeli police as a fugitive continues advising a European president while the case against Netanyahu’s inner circle becomes more politically contested with each passing week.
