ADL: Conspiracy Theories Linking Israel to WikiLeaks Circulate on the Internet
As the story about WikiLeaks’s release of U.S. diplomatic cables gained media attention around the world, a number of Web sites across the ideological spectrum began to circulate conspiracy theories alleging that Israel was secretly involved in the publication of the cables.
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To date, these sources have promoted two major claims regarding WikiLeaks’s relationship to Israel. One claim is that WikiLeaks and its founder Julian Assange “struck a deal” with Israel to withhold the cables that were “embarrassing” to Israel. This narrative about Israel negotiating with Assange may have first surfaced in Al Haqiqa, an online publication affiliated with a Syrian opposition group, which was cited as a source by other articles posted in Arabic and English, as well as select press agencies. Others furthered this claim by alleging that Israel’s “deal” with Assange either aimed to undermine the United States or sought to create an opening to attack Iran.
Another theory circulating online is that Assange actually works for Israel as a “spy,” with the alleged evidence being the scarcity of cables related to Israel in the materials that were leaked to the public and the press.