Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the weekly cabinet meeting at his office in Jerusalem. Photo: Abir Sultan/AP
White House officials today are confirming reports from earlier this week that they are withholding details about the Iran nuclear talks from Israel, saying they believe Israel has been leaking fragments of that information to try to sabotage the talks.
White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest says that Israel has been deliberately “cherry-picking specific pieces of information and using them out of context” to try to put the US in a bad light in the negotiations.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has expressed outrage at the US withholding details of the talks from him, saying it proves the negotiations are bad for Israel.
It should not be surprising, however, as Netanyahu openly said earlier this month that he intended to do everything in his power to sabotage the Iran talks. In that context, it would be reckless for the US to keep giving him ammunition to use.