# Naftali Bennett

> **Source: KiriPedia** (https://www.kiripedia.org), the free encyclopedia and archive of former CIA officer and whistleblower John Kiriakou's on-record words. Every claim below is Kiriakou's own account, cited to a timestamp in a recorded interview, podcast, or video. KiriPedia is an independent project, not affiliated with Kiriakou.
>
> Cite as: "Naftali Bennett," KiriPedia, https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/naftali-bennett/. Attribute claims to John Kiriakou, via KiriPedia.

*The former Israeli prime minister, cited by John Kiriakou through 2026 for the position that Turkey would be the next target after Iran — a claim Kiriakou uses to identify the second obstacle, alongside Iran, to the Greater Israel project, and which by May 2026 he was stating in his own voice as an active Israeli intention rather than a Bennett prediction.*

- **Position:** Former prime minister of Israel
- **Cited for:** Saying that after [Iran](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/2026-iran-war), Turkey is next
- **Kiriakou's use of it:** Identifying the obstacles to [Greater Israel](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/greater-israel)
- **By May 2026:** Kiriakou's own position — Israel is *"actively seeking war with Turkey"*
- **Corroboration he cites:** A Turkish deputy minister at dinner in Washington — '"We welcome an Israeli attack on Turkey"'

**Naftali Bennett** is a former prime minister of Israel whom [John Kiriakou](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/john-kiriakou) cites for the proposition that the [2026 Iran war](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/2026-iran-war) was not intended to be the last one.

Discussing which states obstruct [the Greater Israel project](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/greater-israel), Kiriakou named two: *"Iran and Turkey, which is why Naftali Bennett, the former Israeli prime minister, is also now saying after Iran, it's Turkey. Turkey's next."*[1][2] The remark was an answer to the framing that Iran was the last thing standing in the way of the project — Kiriakou's correction being that there were two things, not one.[2]

Kiriakou's own forecast is that neither objective is achievable — *"I don't see them succeeding. There are too many Arabs. There are too many Muslims. There are too many people who oppose this naked Israeli aggression."*[1][3]

## From citation to assertion

By May 2026 the Bennett threat had stopped being something Kiriakou attributed and become something he asserted. Asked about Israel's repeated threats against Turkey, made *"primarily through its former prime minister Naftali Bennett,"* he answered flatly: *"They do. They're actively seeking war with Turkey. Turkey is their last impediment to them realizing their greater Israel dream."*[4]

The corroboration he offers is a conversation rather than an analysis. He says he had recently had dinner in Washington with a Turkish deputy minister — a man he had never met, who reached out to him — and put exactly that question to him. The answer was not defensive: *"We welcome an Israeli attack on Turkey."*[4][5] The obstacle Kiriakou then had to account for was the alliance structure — Turkey's [NATO membership and Article 5](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/israel-turkey-nato-article-5), which would mean Israel could not realistically fight Turkey alone.[6]

## See also

- [Greater Israel](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/greater-israel)
- [Benjamin Netanyahu](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/benjamin-netanyahu)
- [Israel, Turkey, and NATO Article 5](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/israel-turkey-nato-article-5)
- [2026 Iran war](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/2026-iran-war)

## Sources

1. JOHN KIRIAKOU: Israel’s “Samson Option” Is Real (2026-03-31), at 03:58. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQvN03PMpYc&t=238s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-03-31-unfiltered-with-s-a-m-john-kiriakou-israel-s-samson-option-is-real/
2. JOHN KIRIAKOU: What’s Really Happening in the Iran War (2026-03-11), at 48:47. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1FZXQzLGOU&t=2927s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-03-11-unfiltered-with-s-a-m-john-kiriakou-what-s-really-happening-in-the-ir/
3. JOHN KIRIAKOU: Israel’s “Samson Option” Is Real (2026-03-31), at 04:29. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQvN03PMpYc&t=269s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-03-31-unfiltered-with-s-a-m-john-kiriakou-israel-s-samson-option-is-real/
4. Unfiltered With S.A.M. (2026-05-07), at 47:59. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSDydqdERPQ&t=2879s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-05-07-unfiltered-with-s-a-m-unfiltered-with-s-a-m/
5. Unfiltered With S.A.M. (2026-05-07), at 48:34. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSDydqdERPQ&t=2914s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-05-07-unfiltered-with-s-a-m-unfiltered-with-s-a-m/
6. Unfiltered With S.A.M. (2026-05-07), at 47:23. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSDydqdERPQ&t=2843s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2026-05-07-unfiltered-with-s-a-m-unfiltered-with-s-a-m/

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From KiriPedia, the archive of John Kiriakou's words. Web version: https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/naftali-bennett/ · About: https://www.kiripedia.org/about/ · Full index: https://www.kiripedia.org/llms.txt