’Baboons,’ ’Retarded Moroccan’: Netanyahu Aide Resigns After Report of Slurs, Criticism of PM - Israel Political News
▻https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/israel-politics/2026-03-25/ty-article/.premium/netanyahu-aide-faces-exit-after-report-of-slurs-criticism-of-pm/0000019d-24af-d868-a1bd-7eef0b4e0000
Israeli Prime Minister’s acting chief of staff Ziv Agmon next to Sara and Benjamin Netanyahu last week.
Ziv Agmon, who assumed the position of Netanyahu’s acting chief of staff because his predecessor faces corruption allegations, denied the statements ascribed to him, saying he faces ’a grave injustice’
Jonathan LisFollow
March 25, 2026Updated:08:36 PM IST
The acting chief of staff to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his spokesman resigned Wednesday following the publication of remarks in which he criticized Netanyahu, his wife Sara, lawmakers from the Likud party and Mizrahi Jews.
In his resignation statement, Ziv Agmon said the comments attributed to him had been conveyed by a friend, were made prior to his appointment in the Prime Minister’s Office and were taken out of context. He said their purpose was “to carry out a character assassination” and harm the prime minister he serves.
Agmon added that he decided to step down because the reports had generated “divisive discourse” around him.
According to a report by Channel 12 News, Ziv Agmon made a series of derogatory comments in closed conversations about members of his own party. “It’s not good that Morocco was opened to Israeli tourism – now we know where our Moroccans came from: Africa. A baboon is a monkey,” he was quoted as saying.
He allegedly referred to Likud MK Nissim Vaturi as a “baboon” and MK Eliyahu Revivo as a “retarded Moroccan.”
“Who would even know these people? What a bunch of baboons. Too bad the entire list can’t be reserved and the primaries scrapped,” he was quoted as saying.
The report also said he remarked in a phone call that “we should publish a job ad for ’rapists and murderers’ for the Likud Knesset list, since there’s already a thief, a burglar and a kidnapper.”
Agmon, who is considered close to Sara Netanyahu, was also quoted as making disparaging remarks about her. “The stupid female lawmakers understand that only flattery works with Sara; they fight over it all the time,” he allegedly said.
According to the report, Agmon also made critical remarks about Netanyahu’s leadership following the October 7 attack by Hamas. “Bibi is finished. The question is whether there will still be a state. He must go home. I wonder who will handle the hostage negotiations – [Communications Minister Shlomo] Karhi or [Regional Cooperation Minister David] Amsalem? The country is finished,” he was quoted as saying.
He also addressed early-war reports that Egypt had warned Israel of an impending “monstrous” attack, saying: “Likud has ended its career. The Egyptians need to release the recording of the call with Bibi – he’s finished.”
Agmon replaced Tzachi Braverman as head of the Prime Minister’s Office several months ago. He was appointed spokesman in July, replacing Omer Dostri, who left after a short tenure due to disagreements.
Reporting to Agmon is Omer Mansour, who was investigated alongside Braverman in the so-called nighttime meeting affair in which police suspect Braverman warned another Netanyahu spokesman, Eli Feldstein, about an impending investigation into the leak of classified documents to the German newspaper Bild in 2024 – the “Bibileaks” case – in which Feldstein was allegedly involved.
Agmon’s holding of two key positions in the Prime Minister’s Office in recent months, during wartime, has underscored Netanyahu’s difficulty in recruiting new figures to his inner circle.
Before announcing his resignation on Wednesday, Agmon said: “I do not intend to address every vile statement attributed to me tonight [Tuesday], but there is one thing I cannot let pass in silence. Anyone who knows me and my work with the prime minister knows full well that the words attributed to me regarding Mizrahi communities are completely foreign to me – not least because a large part of my own family is of Mizrahi and Moroccan descent. A grave injustice has been done to me.”