Israel-Russia Tensions Flare Over Netanyahu's Antisemitism Claims

By קרן בצלאל

Translated & summarized from Mako by baba

CenterCharged tone

Hebrew · 7 newsrooms covering

Plus

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Russia of leading an online campaign to spread antisemitism, particularly targeting the American right via Alexander Dugin. Russia's Foreign Ministry strongly denied the claims, calling them "ridiculous" and expressing embarrassment. Moscow also recalled a past offer for cyber cooperation that Israel did not accept.

The story in 5 lines · by baba

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Russia of orchestrating antisemitic online content.
Netanyahu specifically named Alexander Dugin, a Putin confidant, as leading the campaign.
Russia's Foreign Ministry called Netanyahu's accusations "ridiculous and baseless."
Moscow expressed embarrassment and denied responsibility for antisemitism.
Russia cited a past unaccepted offer for cyber cooperation as a missed opportunity.

Israel-Russia Tensions Flare Over Netanyahu's Antisemitism Claims — Editorial illustration generated by baba News, not a photograph of the event.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly accused Moscow of orchestrating a significant portion of the antisemitic online content targeting the West, specifically mentioning Russian philosopher and ideologue Alexander Dugin, who is close to President Vladimir Putin. Netanyahu claimed that Dugin is leading a propaganda campaign aimed at "poisoning the young American right."

The Russian Foreign Ministry vehemently rejected Netanyahu's accusations, calling them "ridiculous and baseless" and expressing embarrassment over the public statements. In an official response, the ministry stated that Russia has a rich shared history with Israel and that such accusations are particularly absurd given the relations between the two countries. They also asserted that antisemitism is virtually nonexistent in Russia due to government policies promoting peace and inter-ethnic harmony.

Moscow further suggested that the issues Netanyahu raised could have been prevented if Israel had accepted Russia's 2018 proposal for a bilateral agreement on information security and cyber cooperation, to which Jerusalem did not respond. The Russian Foreign Ministry expressed bewilderment at the public accusations, implying that cooperation could have averted the creation of problems "out of nowhere."