Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak threatened to file a suit against the British newspaper, Daily Mail, for allegedly libeling him in billionaire Jeffrey Epstein’s scandal.
Barak said his rivals in the Israeli right-wing are running a global campaign to discredit him and make him fail in toppling Benjamin Netanyahu in the upcoming elections.
His name was linked to the case of Epstein, who was accused of sex trafficking and conspiracy to traffic minors for sex because they are business partners.
However, the British newspaper mentioned another kind of partnership, related to prostitution and women. It published a picture of him hiding his face as he entered the convicted sex offender’s Manhattan townhouse.
“A bevy of young women were also seen going into the multi-millionaires lavish seven-story home on the same day that Barak was snapped,” according to the newspaper.
The Israeli right-wing immediately sought to exploit the new scene and place the “Epstein-Barak scandal” at the core of the Israeli electoral battle. Yet, Barak reiterated having no relations with Epstein that exceed commercial matters.
Current and former premiers exchanged accusations on Twitter after the scandal of arresting a billionaire in prostitution charges from more than a week.
Netanyahu published on his official account a press report about Epstein’s arrest and the relations between him and Barak, and he attached the report with a comment saying: “the media remains silent.”
“It is painful to discover that one of your acquaintances is involved in criminal activities. First Netanyahu and now Epstein,” Barak responded on his official Twitter account.
Netanyahu has repeatedly tweeted about the relations between Barak and Epstein and how the latter “gave Barak $2.5 million.”
Epstein was arrested on July 6 in New York, and he has appeared before the court. In 2007 and 2008, Epstein was accused of molesting minors. Probes revealed that he had paid young girls for sexual services and promoted their services to other people.
