Netanyahu’s ‘War’ Comment Wasn’t an Accident
The Israeli prime minister may have been aiming at a domestic audience but his exuberance risks going too far.
Jumping the gun.
Photographer: ABIR SULTAN/AFP/Getty Images
On Wednesday, before the opening of the Warsaw Ministerial conference on the Middle East, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke to an Israeli TV reporter. The gathering of more 60 nations -- including Arab countries -- is, he said, an important step in pursuing their “common interest in advancing war with Iran."
This was the official English translation of the prime minister’s remark, published by the Government Press Office of Israel. An hour or so later, Netanyahu’s office removed the word "war" and watered down the comment to a "common interest in combating Iran." This change was explained as the correction of a translating error. It wasn't. Netanyahu plainly said “war”; and he meant war.