US President Donald Trump basked in adulation on Monday at the Israeli Knesset, where he was hailed as ‘the president of peace’, even as regime lawmakers laughed at his jokes, applauded his idle boasts, and rose for more standing ovations than one could count.
Behind the theatrics, Trump’s address was marked by wilful distortion and obfuscation of facts.
Trump’s boastful speech unfolded as part show, part sermon, part self-congratulation and blended grandiose claims of ‘peace’ in West Asia with sweeping falsehoods.
He exaggerated ceasefire achievements, distorted economic figures, misrepresented his own diplomatic record, and even belittled serious corruption charges facing Netanyahu.
Fact-checkers worldwide have since flagged his remarks as a performance of fiction than facts.
Here is a breakdown of some of Trump’s most glaring fabrications and distortions from the Knesset podium, including his portrayal of Iran and its nuclear programme, his take on US foreign policy, and his persistent habit of rewriting his own presidency as a miracle of peace.
On Iran
1. ‘So we dropped 14 bombs on Iran’s key nuclear facilities, totally, as I said originally, obliterating them. That’s been confirmed.’
The Pentagon’s own intelligence assessment contradicts this claim, declaring that US strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities did not destroy the country’s nuclear programme. The June report confirmed that centrifuges remained ‘largely intact’ and the damage was limited to above-ground structures.
2. ‘Together we stopped the number one state sponsor of terror from obtaining the world’s most dangerous weapons. They would have it in two months or less.’
The annual US intelligence threat assessment report released in March categorically stated that Iran was not building a nuclear weapon, echoing similar reports in the past.
Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, has issued a religious edict banning all weapons of mass destruction. In line with the edict, Iran has repeatedly maintained that it does not seek nuclear weapons but will continue its right to peaceful nuclear energy and research.
Meanwhile, the United States, which has fought at least five full-fledged wars since 1950 and intervened militarily in dozens of others, has been responsible for millions of civilian deaths worldwide.
3. ‘They (Iran) want a peace deal. I think they are tired; they want to survive.’
In September, Ayatollah Khamenei rejected Washington’s demands regarding nuclear negotiations.
He warned that talks with the US under current conditions would bring ‘no benefit’ and instead cause ‘serious and possibly irreparable harms’ to the country.
Iran has already denounced Trump’s claims and his offer of friendship, calling them ‘shameful’, coming just months after a US-Israeli aggression against the country, which killed over a thousand people.
On Israel
4. ‘Bibi used the weapons well.’
More than 200,000 tons of explosives have been dropped on Gaza since October 7, 2023, equivalent to the force of thirteen Hiroshima bombs, according to the Gaza media office.
These weapons killed nearly 68,000 Palestinians and left much of the territory in ruins. Tens of thousands more remain trapped under the rubble and unaccounted for.
That’s how effectively Netanyahu used Trump’s bombs – not only in Gaza, but also in Lebanon, Yemen, and Iran, mainly targeting civilian infrastructure.
5. ‘Thousands of Israeli civilians were attacked by terrorists.’
While Trump framed October 7, 2023, as an unprovoked massacre, the Al-Aqsa Storm operation was a response to the policy of death and destruction inflicted by the regime on Palestinians for decades.
On the killings, Israel’s Haaretz revealed that the Israeli army had invoked the Hannibal Directive that day, ordering troops to fire on vehicles heading to Gaza even if captives were inside.
Many captives who reached Gaza were later killed by Israeli bombardment, and not by Hamas.
6. ‘Implementation of a ceasefire agreement and return of hostages mark the historic dawn of a new Middle East – an incredible triumph for Israel and the world.’
Despite its overwhelming firepower and foreign backing, Israel failed to achieve key objectives in its genocidal war on Gaza. It neither freed the captives nor defeated the resistance group Hamas.
Trump further claimed that ‘decades of fomenting terrorism and extremism’ in Gaza and Iran had ‘backfired completely and totally’.
The reality is that Israel’s war crimes and genocide have only strengthened the resistance, while igniting unprecedented anti-occupation sentiment across the world.
7. ‘Gazans’ total focus should now be on restoring stability, safety, dignity, and economic development … the better life their children deserve.’
Israel has been destroying Palestinian life for over seven decades now with complete impunity. In the ongoing genocidal campaign alone, the regime killed over 20,000 children.
UNICEF estimates that 3,000-4,000 children in Gaza lost one or more limbs due to bombardments.
Nearly all educational institutions in Gaza have been destroyed. Most of the hospitals have also been bombed, with teachers and medics either killed or imprisoned.
8. ‘In Lebanon, the dagger of Hezbollah aimed at Israel’s throat has been totally shattered. The president of Lebanon is doing very well disarming Hezbollah.’
Hezbollah has publicly rejected disarmament claims. The Lebanese resistance movement continues to maintain and expand its military capabilities in response to Israeli occupation and aggression.
Despite the assassination of senior Hezbollah leaders during the genocidal war, the movement’s rank and file remain intact under the leadership of Sheikh Naim Qassem. Its political structure also remains in place, continuing to wield significant influence across the country.
9. ‘The long and difficult war has now ended – some say 3,000 years, some say 500 – the grand daddy of them all.’
Palestine’s occupation and apartheid are rooted in the 1917 Balfour Declaration, when Britain pledged to create ‘a national home for the Jewish people’ in Palestine, uprooting the indigenous population.
The disastrous policy facilitated mass Jewish immigration, land confiscation, and ultimately the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians, which forms the real genesis of this century-old issue.
10. ‘The entire region has endorsed the plan: Gaza will be immediately demilitarised, Hamas will be disarmed.’
Hamas has categorically rejected disarmament, stating it will only surrender weapons once there is no occupation and a sovereign Palestinian state exists.
Until then, resistance remains legitimate and necessary for defence. And we have already seen it since the occupation came into force. The resistance forces are patrolling the streets across Gaza.
11. ‘You (Israel) have won.’
Israel was defeated. Its stated war goals, the destruction of Hamas and recovery of all captives, were not realised, while its moral, diplomatic, and legal standing continues to collapse.
The regime’s international standing has taken a severe hit, and its leaders, including the premier, have arrest warrants issued against them by the International Criminal Court.
12. ‘Israel wanted peace.’
Netanyahu repeatedly sabotaged Gaza ceasefire talks. In March, Israel shattered a truce with Hamas by launching airstrikes that killed hundreds of Palestinians across Gaza.
In the past two years, the regime sabotaged multiple ceasefire agreements. Even the US, first under Biden and later under Trump, vetoed every ceasefire resolution in the United Nations.
On the United States
13. ‘Like in the US right now, it will be a golden age of Israel and the Middle East.’
The US is far from a ‘golden age’. A government shutdown entered its second full week. Inflation and trade wars have angered the public amid the weakening of America’s global standing.
An NPR/Marist poll found that nearly one-third of Americans believe ‘political violence may be necessary to set the country on track’.
Trump’s own ratings have plummeted and the country is currently on a warpath with China. Tensions are also soaring closer to home with Venezuela. Americans are already fed up with Trump.
14. ‘Under the Obama and Biden administrations, there was hatred toward Israel.’
Both administrations expanded military assistance and strategic cooperation with Israel, especially during the genocide, when Biden generously splurged the taxpayers’ money on the Gaza war.
The Biden administration spent $21.7 billion in additional military aid to Israel. Biden even claimed to be a ‘proud Zionist’ during one of his meetings with Netanyahu.
For his part, Barack Obama in 2016 signed the largest US military aid package to Israel in history. He also never shied away from spending American taxpayers’ money on the top US ally.
Self-glorification
15. ‘I settled eight wars in eight months. My personality is about stopping wars.’
Trump claims to be a peacemaker, but most of his so-called ‘settlements’ were fragile ceasefires or partial deals, not enduring resolutions. His policies only brought more wars and chaos.
He has provided unconditional support to the Netanyahu regime in its genocidal war on Gaza.
His presidency included an unprovoked attack on Iran, multiple military interventions, drone strikes, and assassinations, including that of Iran’s top anti-terror commander, General Qassem Soleimani.
On his orders, the US naval forces recently carried out multiple attacks on ships near Venezuela in a provocative move. Nicolas Maduro government has warned the US against the escalation of tensions.
Trump has also hinted at reoccupying the Bagram airbase in Kabul, which marks another escalation.
16. ‘People of every faith live, work, pray, and raise their families side by side in Israel with love. This is one of the modern miracles Israel has given to the world.’
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) last year ruled that Israel committed serious international law violations and practices apartheid against Palestinians. Palestinians across the occupied territories not only face settler-colonialism, but they are also subjected to racial discrimination.
Even Arabs living in the occupied territories or Christians have faced the worst forms of discrimination.
17. ‘Israel is more respected today than at any time in history.’
Far from respect, Israel faces global condemnation and isolation. Its genocidal war has killed nearly 68,000 Palestinians, triggered famine, and isolated the regime diplomatically.
At the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in September, delegates walked out during Netanyahu’s speech. Many world leaders delivered strongly-worded speeches condemning the regime.
Meanwhile, a recent US poll found that 41 per cent of Americans believe that support for Israel no longer serves their national interest.
As it turns out, Trump’s Knesset speech was less of a president’s address and more of a theatrical performance of delusion, a fusion of fantasy, falsehood, and applause.
However, beneath the cosmetic smiles lies the grim reality of a genocide in Gaza, diplomatic isolation for Israel, domestic unrest in the US, and a trail of lies that crumble under even the lightest scrutiny.