Obama tried to remove Netanyahu from office: Report

The US administration of President Barack Obama was directly involved in an attempt to remove Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from office, according to a new report. 

“It’s no secret” that the White House had attempted to influence the outcome of last week’s Israeli elections, an Israeli official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told The Times of Israel on Tuesday.

The report said the US move was partially motivated by a desire for revenge over Netanyahu’s provocative speech before Congress earlier this month, which attempted to undermine nuclear talks with Iran, an important element of US foreign policy.

“The White House is driven by three main motives,” the report said.

“The first is revenge [over the Congress speech]. The second is frustration: It’s no secret that they were involved in an attempt to bring down the Netanyahu government – something that we have clear knowledge of – and failed. The third [motive] is the administration’s attempt to divert attention from the negotiations with Iran to the Palestinian issue.”

In a similar report published on Sunday, Republican Party strategist John McLaughlin claimed that Obama attempted to get Netanyahu defeated in the latest Israeli elections.

"There was money moving that included taxpayer US dollars, through non-profit organizations. And there were various liberal groups in the United States that were raising millions to fund a campaign called V15 against Prime Minister Netanyahu," said McLaughlin, a pollster for Netanyahu's Likud party.

Netanyahu clinched a divisive victory in Tuesday’s Israeli election. He made opposition to nuclear negotiations with Iran a centerpiece of his reelection campaign. He also rejected the idea of a Palestinian state, which has been a pillar of US foreign policy.

In an interview with The Huffington Post conducted released on Saturday, Obama warned Netanyahu over his opposition to a Palestinian state and for making derogatory comments about Arabs living in the occupied territories.

Obama’s remarks were an unusually forceful and public condemnation of its top ally. His comments were the latest evidence that the toxic relationship between the White House and the Zionist regime has reached a new low.

On Monday, White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough called on Israel to end its “50-year occupation” of the West Bank and East al-Quds (Jerusalem), criticizing Tel Aviv over its continued settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territories.

AHT/GJH

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