President-Elect Donald Trump shared a post on his Truth Social account that included a video in which an antisemitic conspiracy theorist made unfounded claims about Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu’s involvement in the 2003 Iraq War initiated by the United States.
In the video, economist Jeffrey Sachs started by alleging that former President Barack Obama had ordered the CIA to depose Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who was overthrown by rebel groups in 2011. Sachs insisted that Obama had issued this order three times over the span of a decade.
About one minute into the video, Sachs shifted the focus to the Iraq War. He argued that the U.S. government knew that Iraq did not possess weapons of mass destruction but pushed the false narrative in order to “sell the war to the American people.”
Sachs then alleged that the Iraq War was initiated by Netanyahu, claiming that the Israeli leader had, from 1995 onward, developed the belief that the only way to eliminate Hamas and Hezbollah was to topple the governments backing them—namely Iraq, Syria, and Iran. He also argued that Netanyahu’s obsession with this goal persists, and that he continues to push for military action against Iran today. “He’s still trying to get us to fight Iran this day, this week,” Sachs said.
Referring to Netanyahu, Sachs went on to say, “He’s a deep, dark son of a ….”
Benjamin Netanyahu, who served as Prime Minister of Israel from 1996 to 1999 before losing re-election, returned to the position in 2009. At the time the Iraq War was planned and executed, the Israeli Prime Minister was Ariel Sharon. Netanyahu held the role of Foreign Minister in Sharon’s government from November 6, 2002, until February 28, 2003, before being appointed Finance Minister.
Trump shared the video without adding any personal commentary. The post was accompanied by text from an account named Wall Street Apes, which highlighted Sachs’ comments about Obama but did not mention Netanyahu or the Iraq War.
Jeffrey Sachs has gained notoriety for his support of conspiracy theories and his defense of authoritarian regimes, such as Syria’s Assad government. In a recent interview with Tucker Carlson, Sachs claimed that Netanyahu had orchestrated the downfall of the Assad regime as part of a 30-year strategy to reshape the Middle East. Sachs further asserted that U.S. military interventions in Lebanon, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Libya, and Sudan were driven by Netanyahu’s wishes.
“Israel has run American foreign policy in the Middle East for 30 years. That’s how it works. Now we have the Israel lobby,” Sachs claimed during the interview with Carlson.
In response to Sachs’ appearance on Carlson’s show, Minister of Diaspora Affairs Amichai Chikli commented, “Congratulations to Tucker Carlson for becoming the leading platform for fringe Holocaust deniers, conspiracy theorists, and blood libel enthusiasts who oppose the State of Israel.”
{Matzav.com}