Ex-Israeli PM refutes claim that Jeffrey Epstein worked for Israeli intelligence

Former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has refuted claims, including one made by U.S. commentator Tucker Carlson, that convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein had worked for Israeli intelligence

“As a former Israeli Prime Minister, with the Mossad having reported directly to me, I say to you with 100% certainty: The accusation that Jeffrey Epstein somehow worked for Israel or the Mossad running a blackmail ring is categorically and totally false,” Bennett posted on X on Jul. 14, referring to Israel’s Mossad intelligence service.

What Carlson said

Bennett's remark comes after Carlson claimed the week before that Epstein had worked with Israel to blackmail the U.S. and that “every single person in Washington D.C.” thinks the same.

The American billionaire financier, who was found dead in his jail cell in 2019 after being convicted of sex trafficking minors, had been connected to several high-profile individuals, including Prince Andrew and former U.S. president Bill Clinton.

While he has been the subject of conspiracy theories for years, Epstein returned to headlines earlier this month following the release of a memo from the U.S. Justice Department (DOJ), which has since fuelled accusations of a cover-up by the Trump administration.

The recent memo stated that there is no evidence supporting theories that Epstein was murdered in jail to conceal a “client list” of influential figures involved in his exploitation of underage girls, nor that such a list exists.

According to The Times of Israel, some theorists have gone on to suggest that he was working on behalf of Israel.

“I think the real answer is Jeffrey Epstein was working on behalf of intel services, probably not American. And we have every right to ask, on whose behalf was he working?” Carlson told a young, pro-Trump audience at a conservative summit on Jul. 11.

He continued, “Now, no one’s allowed to say that the foreign government is Israel because we have been somehow cowed into thinking that’s naughty. There is nothing wrong with saying that. There is nothing hateful about saying that.”

“We just won’t take it anymore”

In his post, Bennett refuted the accusation as “a lie being peddled by prominent online personalities such as Tucker Carlson pretending they know things they don’t.”

“They just make things up, say it with confidence and these lies stick, because it’s Israel,” he said. “There’s a vicious wave of slander and lies against my country and my people, and we just won’t take it anymore.”

Carlson later responded to Bennett’s post.

“You ‘just won’t take it anymore’? Instead of issuing threats on social media, why don’t you sit down for a rational interview on Jeffrey Epstein’s ties to the Israeli government?” Carlson wrote on X.

He added, “We’ll reach out to your office this morning.”

Fractures within the Trump administration

The BBC reported that since the release of the DOJ’s memo, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi has been bearing the brunt of critics, with Trump supporters calling on her to resign.

In February, she seemed to confirm to Fox News that the list of Epstein’s alleged clients existed. Asked if the DOJ will be releasing the list, she responded, “It’s sitting on my desk right now to review.”

However, after the department said on Jul. 7 that there was no "no incriminating 'client list'", she clarified to reporters the following day that she had been referring to the entire Epstein file and other files.

Following what critics have called a “botched” investigation, fractures have deepened within the Trump administration.

Deputy Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) director Dan Bongino, a former rightwing podcaster who spent years promoting Epstein conspiracy theories, has even threatened to quit over Bondi’s handling of the case.

Trump appears to side with Bondi, though, urging the nation to move past the case.

“They’re all going after Attorney General Pam Bondi, who is doing a FANTASTIC JOB!” Trump posted on Truth Social on Jul. 12. “We’re on one Team, MAGA, and I don’t like what’s happening.”

He continued to plead with his followers to “not waste Time and Energy on Jeffrey Epstein, somebody that nobody cares about.”

Top image via Government Press Office of Israel & Britannica