Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a video addressing rumors that his country was responsible for the murder of Charlie Kirk
last week in Utah, calling it a “monstrous big lie” as he also argued that the slain conservative activist “loved Israel.”

“Joseph Goebbels, the Nazi propaganda minister, said that the bigger the lie, the faster it will spread,” Netanyahu said in the clip. “Well, somebody has fabricated a monstrous big lie that Israel had something to do with Charlie Kirk’s horrific murder. This is insane. It is false. It is outrageous.”

“Charlie Kirk was a giant, a once-in-a-century talent who defended freedom, defended America, defended our common Judeo-Christian civilization,” he continued. “Charlie loved Israel. He loved the Jewish people. He told me so in a letter that he sent me just a few months ago.”

“‘One of my greatest joys as a Christian,’ he said, ‘is advocating for Israel and forming alliances with Jews to protect Judeo-Christian civilization,'” the prime minister added. “He encouraged me to make the case directly to the American people about how vital Israel is to U.S. national security. He told me, ‘the Holy Land is so important to my life, it pains me to see support for Israel slip away.'”

Netanyahu said if Kirk disagreed sometimes with his policies or decisions, he “welcomed it.”

“This is the essence of Charlie. This is the essence of a free country. It’s exactly what Charlie stood for. And I knew that his suggestions always came from the heart, from his love for Israel and from his love for the Jewish people,” Netanyahu said.

“A few weeks before his death, I spoke to Charlie. I invited him to visit Israel again. And sadly, that won’t happen. Now, some are peddling these disgusting rumors, perhaps out of obsession, perhaps with Qatari funding. What I do know is this, Charlie Kirk was a great man, and a great man deserves honor, not lies. Rest in peace, Charlie Kirk. May your memory be a blessing,” he continued.