Businessman Roni Mana Slams Former Footballer Eli Ohana Over Political Stance
Translated & summarized from Ice by baba
Businessman Roni Mana publicly criticized former footballer Eli Ohana for his political commentary on Channel 12, calling him a "Bibi-st" and suggesting he belong on Channel 14. The exchange occurred during a discussion about the Qatar-gate affair, where Ohana's views on Prime Minister Netanyahu's advisor, Yonatan Urich, differed from those of former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett. Mana also criticized broadcaster Ofira Assayag for not confronting Ohana. The Qatar-gate affair involves alleged Qatari influence operations.
The story in 6 lines · by baba
- Businessman Roni Mana criticized former footballer Eli Ohana's political commentary on Channel 12.
- Mana accused Ohana of being a "Bibi-st" and suggested he belonged on the right-wing Channel 14.
- The controversy arose during a discussion about the Qatar-gate affair involving PM Netanyahu's advisor Yonatan Urich.
- Former PM Naftali Bennett had strongly condemned Urich, calling him a traitor.
- Ohana's nuanced stance on Urich's actions sparked the debate with Bennett and Mana.
- Mana also criticized broadcaster Ofira Assayag for not challenging Ohana's remarks.
Businessman Roni Mana, once a confidant of the Netanyahu couple, has become a vocal critic of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government. Mana expressed his strong disapproval of former footballer Eli Ohana's political commentary during a recent interview on Channel 12. Ohana, who also broadcasts for 103FM, appeared alongside Ofira Assayag and Barak Sari to discuss the Qatar-gate affair with former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett.
During the discussion, Bennett sharply criticized Yonatan Urich, an advisor to Prime Minister Netanyahu, calling him a traitor. Ohana, however, differentiated between Urich's actions being wrong and calling them treasonous, which drew Bennett's ire. Mana, watching the exchange, took to social media platform X to condemn Ohana's remarks.
Mana accused Ohana of trying to be a "Bibi-st" (a supporter of Netanyahu) and stated that Ohana, as a former football star, should stick to sports and not engage in politics. He suggested Ohana was more suited for Channel 14, a right-wing Israeli channel, rather than co-hosting with Assayag and Sari. Mana also criticized Assayag for not challenging Ohana more directly.
Mana further elaborated on the Qatar-gate affair, describing it as a security and public scandal involving alleged influence operations funded by Qatar to improve its image and harm regional rivals. The affair has been linked to former security officials and figures from Netanyahu's Prime Minister's Office, including Urich.