The Trump White House plagiarized its justification for attacking Iran from the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, the main DC outfit promoting war with Tehran. The think tank was originally founded to “enhance Israel’s image,” and partners closely with the Israeli government.
The Trump Administration reportedly copied nearly verbatim the official rationale it presented for military action against Iran from a document created by the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies (FDD). This pro-war group, known for its close affiliation with Israeli intelligence, was initially established to “enhance Israel’s image.”
The document was written by Tzvi Kahn, who previously served as assistant director for policy and government affairs at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).
An analyst Stephen McIntyre observed on Thursday that a March 2, 2026 White House statement accusing Tehran of 44 acts of terrorism against Americans mirrors FDD’s June 2025 list almost exactly.
The White House made only minor changes, mostly adding the prefix “Iran-backed” to groups such as Hezbollah and Hamas. Where the Trump team did revise the list substantially, it usually resulted in intensifying the underlying accusations, McIntyre noted.
A notable example is the 1996 Khobar Towers attack in Saudi Arabia. While the FDD initially stated Hezbollah al-Hejaz was “deemed responsible,” the White House version asserted the group’s involvement as a fact. McIntyre pointed out ongoing unresolved questions about that incident, including Clinton’s Defense Secretary William Perry and others doubting Iran’s role, suspecting Al Qaeda instead.
A 2009 report by journalist Gareth Porter, based on interviews with over a dozen former CIA, FBI, and Clinton administration officials, showed the FBI investigation into the Khobar Towers bombing was biased toward blaming Iran, despite Al Qaeda being the more probable culprit. Porter also revealed Saudi secret police had tortured Shia citizens to falsely confess.
Although the White House refrained from blaming Iran—and FDD—for the September 11, 2001 attacks, it repeated the think tank’s assertion that Tehran-backed militias caused 603 US military fatalities in Iraq. Yet this figure varies widely from official sources and constitutes 60% of all US combat deaths attributed to Iran, a point McIntyre stressed is not supported by State Department terrorism reports.
Among those counted as casualties attributed to Iran, at least four Americans previously served in Israel’s military, including a US citizen killed during the 2006 Lebanon invasion and two members of the IDF’s Golani brigade who died in the 2014 Gaza incursion. Another, born in Israel and also part of the Golani brigade, died in 2015 amid violent clashes with settlers in the West Bank.
Several claims in the Trump administration’s list are contradicted by their own sources, such as the December 2019 event where it alleged “Iran-backed Kataib Hezbollah terrorists killed an American civilian contractor and wounded several U.S. service members in a rocket attack at K1 Air Base in Kirkuk, Iraq.” The Reuters article they cited, however, did not confirm Iran’s responsibility and explicitly stated that “no group has claimed responsibility.” Reuters noted that “Islamic State militants operating in the area have turned to insurgency-style tactics.”
The assertion that “Iran and its proxies” caused the deaths of three US soldiers in a 2024 drone strike on a US base in Jordan is also dubious. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin stated at the time that “we don’t know” the extent of Iran’s involvement, adding “but it really doesn’t matter.”
“We have FDD”: Israel’s favorite Washington cutout
When founded in 2001, FDD was initially known as EMET—a Hebrew word meaning “truth”—as documented in IRS filings. The nascent organization described its purpose as working to “enhance Israel’s image in North America and the public’s understanding of issues affecting Israeli-Arab relations.” It later changed its name to appear less explicitly Israeli.
Today, FDD stands as the primary Washington think tank advocating for US conflict with Iran. During President Trump’s first term, it took part in a $1.5 million State Department program designed to target opponents of the “maximum pressure” strategy on Iran. At that time, FDD openly called for military action against Iran. Its experts have testified before the House Foreign Affairs Committee more than representatives of any other think tank, persistently promoting confrontation with Tehran.
At a 2017 Israeli American Council conference in Washington DC, then-Director General of Israel’s Ministry of Strategic Affairs Sima Vakhnin-Gil was secretly recorded by undercover journalist James Kleinfeld. During a private breakout session, she acknowledged FDD as a collaborator in a covert Israeli initiative to surveil Americans involved in Palestine solidarity efforts.
“This is something that only a country can do the best,” Vakhnin-Gil said. “We have FDD. We have others working on this.”
The Israeli American Council’s sponsor was a billionaire also known as a major contributor to FDD: the Sheldon and Miriam Adelson Foundation. Since Sheldon Adelson’s passing, his widow Miriam has become the principal donor to Trump’s campaigns. Following donations totaling hundreds of millions, Adelson apparently expected Trump to initiate war on Iran in Israel’s interest, according to conservative former Fox News host Megyn Kelly.
Beyond supplying talking points to justify aggression against Iran, FDD has suggested civilian targets for US strikes, including Tehran’s oil depot, which Israel attacked on March 8. This bombing set ablaze a facility that blanketed the city of 9 million residents in hazardous smoke.
Following this strike, a series of retaliatory Iranian assaults on oil infrastructure in US-allied countries provoked growing unease among Trump’s advisors. “We don’t think it was a good idea,” one official told Axios. However, by that point, escalation was unavoidable—they had adhered to the FDD-written, Israeli-crafted blueprint leading into a quagmire.
Original article: thegrayzone.com
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