Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly saved James Packer's life after his breakup with Mariah Carey.
The 52-year-old Australian billionaire - who dated and eventually got engaged to Carey before splitting up in October 2016 - became friends with Netanyahu in 2014. They were introduced to one another through a mutual friend, Arnon Milchan, a major Hollywood producer and an Israeli businessman, according to The Daily Mail.
So when Packer and Carey broke up their nine-month engagement, Netanyahu apparently convinced him to come to Israel. Milchan mentioned the call during a police interview regarding the corruption allegations against Netanyahu, nicknamed Bibi.
"I asked Bibi to pick up a phone and call Jimmy to save his life," Milchan reportedly said.
Packer is one of several wealthy businessmen who had been questioned about expensive gifts allegedly given to Netanyahu and his family. He was interrogated as a "witness not a suspect." So considering he showered the prime minister with gifts, it's expected he would return him the favor, right? Israeli police believe Packer gave gifts worth $71,000 to Netanyahu and his family.
"I and other people were worried; we thought that if we didn't act quickly, his life would be in danger. Bibi was the only one who managed to convince him to come to Israel. I think that saved his life."
Milchan's words conveniently came as the investigations into Israel's longest-serving prime minister came to an end. Netanyahu was being questioned over corruption allegations and has been accused of "acting on behalf of wealthy supporters and businessmen in exchange for gifts and favorable news coverage," as reported by The Daily Mail. The prime minister has denied allegations against him, called the corruption investigation a "witch-hunt," and claimed that it's all just a false information to force him out of office.
Many suspect Milchan's words to be "part of a range of celebrity character references in favor of Netanyahu," according to Al Araby. Every once in a while, a prominent celebrity expresses support for Israel, >disappointing fans who advocate for the Palestinian cause.
Netanyahu "saved" Packer's life, but what about Palestinians?
As the prime minister of Israel, shouldn't Netanyahu have a say in the ongoing crimes against children, journalists, and everyday Palestinian citizens? Or are their lives just not important to him?
Israel's establishment in 1948 was built on stolen Palestinian land, which it has since claimed to be its own. The decades-long illegal occupation has left millions without a home, without a family, and without the freedom to roam around land that belongs to its people. The illegitimate state continues to >murder Palestinians day in and day out.
Earlier this year, a United Nations inquiry confirmed that Israel committed war crimes and crimes against humanity by targeting unarmed children, journalists, and disabled individuals in response to the Great March of Return demonstrations in 2018. According to the report, Israeli forces killed 183 Palestinians at the time, including 35 children. Has Netanyahu thought about them? Has he thought about the generations of Palestinians being murdered, imprisoned, and left without a home?
Israel has maintained a military occupation of Palestinian territories since 1967 and very little is being done about the segregation and torture Palestinians endure.
Apartheid. Has Netanyahu heard of it? The illegal apartheid wall runs 280 miles (450.6 km) long and has been under construction for 15 years. Eighty-five percent of the wall runs inside the occupied West Bank, corroding even more land from Palestinians, destroying more villages, uprooting centuries-old trees, cutting off Palestinian farmers from their lands and crops, and allowing more illegal Israeli settlers to occupy more territory. And let's not get started with the hundreds of illegal Israeli settlements on Palestinian land.
Does Netanyahu ever think about saving the lives of innocent people or are the only lives "worth saving" the ones who send him extravagant presents?