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Following Pushback, John Cusack Deletes BlueSky Posting Linking Jeffrey Epstein with Jews and Israel
Then-US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks after a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Prague, Czech Republic, May 31, 2024. Photo: Peter David Josek/Pool via REUTERS
An actor known for a string of successful romantic comedies more than 20 years ago has again emphasized his antipathy toward the Jewish state with a meme he posted on the BlueSky social media network depicting a four-degrees connection between former US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Israel’s espionage agency, and the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Entertainment journalism site Deadline captured a screenshot of the since-deleted image shared by John Cusack, which includes a photo of Blinken linked to his stepfather Samuel Pisar, who is in turn tied to Robert Maxwell (labeled as a Mossad agent), the father of Ghislaine Maxwell, the convicted Epstein accomplice who received a 20-year prison sentence on June 28, 2022.
The image’s creator chose to label each individual with a blue Star of David ripped from the Israeli flag.
Speculation that Ghislaine and Epstein may have worked as secret Israeli intelligence operatives has long circulated online in fringe circles of both the right and left.
Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones uploaded a video on Monday in which he reacted to the release of a Department of Justice memo that asserted that no “client list” or broader blackmail conspiracy existed linked to Epstein, claims which have inspired skepticism from both President Donald Trump’s steadfast supporters and cutting critics.
The Jones video was captioned: “The DOJ is running cover for the CIA and Mossad. NO ONE IS BUYING THIS!! Next the DOJ will say ‘Actually, Jeffrey Epstein never even existed.’ This is over the top sickening.”
Jones said in the video, “the left, they’re all complicit. They’re openly promoting pedophilia. We know they’re pure evil. And they’ll think it’s all funny, ‘Oh, look, Alex is sad. MAGA’s tearing [itself] apart.’”
On X, Cusack reposted a Monday post from account “Margaret Kimberly” who uses handle @ Freedomrideblog and wrote: “Jeffrey Epstein trafficked young women in order to compromise powerful men on behalf of Israel. So no, you’ll never get the details.”
Cusack’s support for such sentiments mirrors a previous incident from June 17, 2019 when the star of “High Fidelity” and “Grosse Pointe Blank” posted another meme drawn from online neo-Nazis before soon deleting it after protests.
The image showed a giant hand with a Star of David pressing down on a group of tiny people alongside a quote misattributed to Voltaire which reads, “To learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize.” The statement’s true source is neo-Nazi Kevin Strom, a former actor and convicted sex offender who pleaded guilty on Jan. 14, 2008 to possessing child pornography, receiving a sentence of 23 months imprisonment.
Cusack shared the meme along with a sentiment popularized by the classic 1976 film “All the President’s Men,” urging that others should “follow the money.” The frequent critic of the Jewish state would later apologize for his promotion of the image.
Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO and national director of the Anti-Defamation League released a statement the next day. “John Cusack’s retweet of an anti-Semitic meme, which has been widely used online by anti-Semites from across the ideological spectrum, shows how easy it is for hatred to go viral in seconds,” he said. “Whether or not you blame it on bots, people are accountable for what they communicate both online & offline. Anti-Semitism and bigotry are unacceptable no matter what point a person is trying to make. This speaks to the larger issue of anti-Semitism becoming normalized in the discussion around Israel, which cannot continue.”
Watchdog group StopAntisemitism awarded Cusack with its “Antisemite of the Week” distinction in January 2024, pointing to the actor-activist’s denial of the widespread, systemic sexual violence inflicted against Israeli women and men during the Oct. 7, 2023 terrorist attacks on Southern Israel.
On June 27, Cusack further elucidated his stance on X, posting, “Iran will surely rush to get a nuclear weapon- and they should get one – it’s the only way to deter US and Israel from bombing every country in Middle East.”
On Monday, Cusack shared a link to his Substack account, where he has yet to publish an article but has begun resharing and posting content on the platform’s Notes social media platform in a style comparable to his X writings. His first post after months of inactivity featured an image advocating the abolition of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency.
While once a box office fixture, often appearing in multiple films across genres each year from the mid-1980s through the late-2010s, the 59-year-old Cusack has been less visible over the last five years, appearing in the 2020 TV show “Utopia,” the 2022 crime thriller “Pursuit,” and the 2024 historical drama “Decoded,” as well as two 2025 features, comedic mystery “Detective Chinatown 1900” and the thriller “Fog of War.”
The post Following Pushback, John Cusack Deletes BlueSky Posting Linking Jeffrey Epstein with Jews and Israel first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.