Netanyahu stirs controversy in Warsaw with mistaken Iran war tweet

The tweet posted onto the PM of Israel's account was soon deleted and replaced with a new tweet.

FEBRUARY 13, 2019 21:35

Updated: FEBRUARY 14, 2019 04:25

Benjamin Netanyahu (photo credit: REUTERS) — Benjamin Netanyahu

(photo credit: REUTERS)

Iran clapped back at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday night after he claimed that Arab countries were sitting down with Israel to discuss "war with Iran."

Prior to comments made by Iran's Foreign Minister Javad Zarif on the tweet, Netanyahu backtracked on the comment and replaced it with the words "combating Iran."

Tweets from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on February 13, 2019. (Screenshot)

The tweet posted onto the prime minister's account was soon deleted and replaced with a new tweet, which said that "representatives of leading Arab countries are sitting down together with Israel in order to advance the common interest of combating Iran."

He originally stated that they "are sitting down together with Israel in order to advance common interest of war with Iran."

Netanyahu is currently in Warsaw attending the Ministerial to Promote a Future of Peace and Security in the Middle East, which opened on Wednesday night and extends into Thursday.

At this stage it is unclear what led to the tweet fiasco and backtrack of the comments or if it was just an error in translation.

What is important about this meeting – and it is not in secret, because there are many of those – is that this is an open meeting with representatives of leading Arab countries, that are sitting down together with Israel in order to advance the common interest of combating Iran.
— PM of Israel (@IsraeliPM) February 13, 2019

Soon after the tweet debacle, Zarif, quoting a screenshot of Netanyahu's original tweet, told the Israeli prime minister that Iran has "always known Netanyahu's illusions. Now, the world - and those attending [the] #WarsawCircus - know, too."

We've always known Netanyahu's illusions. Now, the world - and those attending #WarsawCircus - know, too pic.twitter.com/0TSDzIak9e
— Javad Zarif (@JZarif) February 13, 2019

Earlier in the evening, Zarif claimed that it was "no coincidence that Iran is hit by terror on the very day that #WarsawCircus begins.

"Especially when cohorts of same terrorists cheer it from Warsaw streets & support it with twitter bots? US seems to always make the same wrong choices, but expect different results," he wrote following a suicide bombing in the country that killed 41 members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps on Wednesday.