Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Twitter Wednesday that he was meeting with Arab leaders to further the “common interest of war with Iran” — but then quickly deleted the bellicose statement.
“I am going to a meeting with 60 foreign ministers and envoys of countries from around the world against Iran,” Netanyahu wrote on Twitter from Warsaw, Poland, where a two-day, U.S.-led summit began Wednesday. The “Ministerial to Promote a Future of Peace and Security in the Middle East” was meant to center on what the administration considers the biggest roadblock to such a future: Iran. But under pressure from European allies, the United States broadened the focus to the entire Middle East.
Israel obviously did not get the memo.
“What is important about this meeting. and it is not in secret, because there are many of those – is that this is an open meeting with representatives of leading Arab countries, that are sitting down together with Israel in order to advance the common interest of war with Iran,” the @IsraeliPM account tweeted.
The message was deleted within minutes and replaced with a less aggressive one:
“What is important about this meeting – and it is not in secret, because there are many of those – is that this is an open meeting with representatives of leading Arab countries, that are sitting down together with Israel in order to advance the common interest of combating Iran.”
What is important about this meeting – and it is not in secret, because there are many of those – is that this is an open meeting with representatives of leading Arab countries, that are sitting down together with Israel in order to advance the common interest of combating Iran.
— PM of Israel (@IsraeliPM) February 13, 2019
Netanyahu often uses his Twitter account to post videos in which he speaks directly to the Iranian people, expressing his support for the anti-government protests that began in late 2017 and have continued, in waves, since then.
Israel has in recent days attacked Iranian targets in Syria, including weapons caches, while Iran last year sent missiles to Syria with slogans reading, “Death to America, Death to Israel, Death to Al Saud.”
Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif noticed his rival’s tweet minutes after it was sent. He posted a screenshot of Netanyahu’s deleted message, adding: “We’ve always known Netanyahu’s illusions. Now, the world – and those attending #WarsawCircus – know, too.”
