Why Epstein’s Relationship With Barak Doesn’t Prove He Wasn’t an Israeli Spy |
Introduction
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently claimed that Jeffrey Epstein’s “unusual close relationship” with former prime minister Ehud Barak proves Epstein was not an Israeli intelligence asset. Writing on X, Netanyahu argued that because Barak is one of his fiercest political rivals, Epstein’s association with Barak demonstrates that Epstein could not have been acting on Israel’s behalf. He portrayed Barak as someone who has spent years undermining Israeli democracy and implied that association with Barak is tantamount to opposition to the state itself.
This argument may be politically convenient, but it is analytically unsound. Intelligence relationships are not determined by partisan alignments, personal rivalries, or domestic political narratives. The fact that Epstein and Barak had a relationship neither proves nor disproves any intelligence affiliation. It establishes only that the two men interacted in documented business and social contexts. Everything beyond that requires evidence, not inference drawn from political loyalty tests.
What We Know
Several facts are established and uncontested.
Jeffrey Epstein and Ehud Barak had a business relationship. Barak invested in and partnered with Epstein on a security-related consulting venture, and he visited Epstein’s properties, including his New York residence. These interactions are documented and........