On February 1, 2026, commentator Ian Carroll claimed on X that “EVERY SINGLE crime documented in the Epstein files was done on behalf of ISRAEL.” He further argued that attention should be shifted away from the abusers and toward what he described as an Israeli blackmail operation that was “founded, funded, and designed” to give Israel leverage over powerful figures. Buckley Carlson, brother of Tucker Carlson, publicly endorsed Carroll’s claim and asserted that Israeli officials also “partook” in the abuse. These claims are false and represent a dangerous deflection from the actual perpetrators of abuse.

There is no evidence tying the Israeli government to Epstein’s sex trafficking operation, and no evidence that any abuse was carried out on Israel’s behalf. Epstein’s only documented connection to the Israeli government was through former Prime Minister Ehud Barak, whom Epstein helped introduce to international business and diplomatic contacts. Epstein also communicated with Barak’s aide, Yoni Koren. There is no evidence that Barak or Koren participated in any abuse of minors.

By contrast, figures such as Steve Bannon, an outspoken critic of Israel, maintained closer personal ties to Epstein than Barak did, yet have not been accused of participating in a state-backed blackmail scheme. Epstein associated with numerous powerful individuals and world leaders, including US intelligence officials like William Burns. Nevertheless, Israel is uniquely singled out as allegedly orchestrating the entire trafficking operation as a blackmail enterprise, despite the absence of supporting evidence.

Israel has not “gained control” of anything as a result of the Epstein revelations. If the operation were an Israeli blackmail scheme, it has demonstrably failed: anti-Israel sentiment has intensified in recent years, including within the U.S. government. The narrative promoted by Carroll, Carlson, and Greene collapses under scrutiny. Israel is simultaneously accused of orchestrating the abuse as a blackmail operation and of participating directly in the abuse, an internal contradiction that implies Israel was blackmailing itself.

Greene has also alleged that Israel pressured President Trump not to release the Epstein files out of fear of being exposed, an accusation that negates the purpose of a successful blackmail operation. If Israel controlled powerful figures through blackmail, it would not need to pressure anyone, it would simply exercise that control.

On July 14, 2025, former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett categorically rejected these claims, stating: “As a former Israeli Prime Minister, with the Mossad having reported directly to me, I say to you with 100 percent certainty: The accusation that Jeffrey Epstein somehow worked for Israel or the Mossad running a blackmail ring is categorically and totally false. Epstein’s conduct, both the criminal and the merely despicable, had nothing whatsoever to do with the Mossad or the State of Israel. Epstein never worked for the Mossad.”

Separately, U.S. intelligence analyst Mike Benz concluded that Epstein functioned as a private intermediary who cultivated informal personal networks involving multiple countries, including Israel, but did not operate as an intelligence asset running a coordinated, state-directed blackmail campaign.

Carroll and Carlson are so fixated on blaming Israel that they contradict themselves. They claim Israel orchestrated Epstein’s crimes as a blackmail operation, and also that Israel participated in the abuse. That would mean Israel was somehow blackmailing itself, a claim that makes no sense on its own terms. Worse, this obsession with Israel shifts attention away from those who actually abused children. Instead of demanding accountability from the perpetrators and their enablers, Carroll and Carlson redirect outrage toward a foreign-state conspiracy they cannot substantiate. The result is a narrative that protects abusers by turning the crime into a political talking point, allowing the actual criminals to escape scrutiny while conspiracy theorists chase phantoms.