Former Mossad director Yossi Cohen reiterated that Israel and the Mossad had no part in the murder of conservative influencer Charlie Kirk during a Thursday interview with Australian pro-Israel influencer Erin Molan.
Cohen's interview came after a widespread wave of internet conspiracy theories blaming Israel and the Israeli intelligence agency for the act.
During the interview, Molan asked him how he responds to such claims, even asking him directly: "Was the Mossad responsible for Charlie Kirk’s death?"
"Absolutely not, we had nothing to do with it," Cohen responded. "The Mossad does not do such things, and certainly not political assassinations. This is super false and evil.
"I understand that with everything happening around the world, the Mossad will always be the first to be accused, the prime suspect," he continued. "We simply don’t do that. I know it is hard to digest with the horrors people are seeing in the US, but this truly is a terrible event."
Who is spreading the conspiracy theories?
Candace Owens, a conservative podcaster and conspiracy theorist who, since Hamas's October 7 massacre, has taken a hardline stance against Israel, stirred major controversy in the US after claiming on her YouTube channel—with nearly 5 million subscribers—in a 70-minute video about Kirk’s murder, that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the State of Israel were somehow involved.
The video drew wide attention due to Owens’s popularity, and the theory spread like wildfire. In a 70-minute video about Kirk’s murder, she presents herself as one of his close friends. She then shared many photos of them through the years, and goes on to claim that she is "seeking the truth" about his murder.
The rumor even reached Israel, where Netanyahu released a video addressing the murder and the theories.
"Joseph Goebbels said that the bigger the lie, the faster it spreads. Someone is spreading the lie that Israel was involved in the murder of Charlie Kirk—it’s insane, it’s not true, it’s propaganda. Charlie was a great man; he deserves respect, not lies.
“This is insane. It is false. It is outrageous,” the prime minister continued. “Charlie Kirk was a giant. A once-in-a-century talent who defended freedom, defended America, defended our common Judeo-Christian civilization.”