Vanity Fair maintained silence on Monday following the publication of a controversial book excerpt alleging that Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law, managed hidden bank accounts funded by Middle Eastern officials, amounting to at least $2 billion. This comes amid growing concerns regarding the piece’s accuracy and veracity.
Despite a formal demand from Kushner’s lawyer, Chad Mizelle, to retract the excerpt from Matthew Cole’s new book “Princes and Thieves: Jared Kushner and Mohamed bin Zayed’s Secret Plot to Remake the Middle East,” the magazine has not responded.
Mizelle, who previously served as a chief of staff at the Justice Department, expressed on X that they have formally notified Vanity Fair and its parent company, Condé Nast, about what they view as false and defamatory claims made against Kushner.
“Serious questions are now being raised about the credibility of this reporting, including by independent journalists,” Mizelle added, emphasizing the lack of any verifiable evidence like bank statements or wire transfer records to back up these significant allegations.
Sources familiar with Kushner mentioned that Vanity Fair did not reach out to him for fact-checking or to request comment before publishing the article last Thursday.
A representative from Vanity Fair did not respond to an inquiry regarding the lack of communication with Kushner or whether they conducted an independent fact-check or relied solely on the publisher, Simon & Schuster.
Kushner is reportedly preparing to take legal action against both Simon & Schuster and Cole, with a subsequent lawsuit against Vanity Fair likely to follow.
Cole’s book was released by Simon & Schuster on Sunday, two days earlier than planned.
In a letter addressed to Vanity Fair and Condé Nast, Kushner’s lawyers labeled the article “defamatory” and described the allegations as “false” and “outrageous.” He and his legal team strongly denied the claims made in the book through a detailed 13-page letter.
Kushner reiterated on X that the accusations detailed by Cole were “completely insane and never happened,” underscoring the absence of any verifiable evidence to support them.
The excerpt claims that Kushner oversaw secret bank accounts backed by Saudi Arabian and UAE leaders, with at least $2 billion allegedly transferred to accounts in Azerbaijan and Israel’s Central Bank—half of which was said to be for Kushner’s personal gain.
However, doubts about Cole’s reporting have emerged. The Bank of Israel informed a reporter that it had no knowledge of such arrangements, and Cole’s own article notes that the central bank does not provide personal accounts.
Additionally, the assertion that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was involved in accessing the supposed central bank account has drawn scrutiny, with Axios’ Barak Ravid pointing out that such accounts are heavily monitored.
Further claims in the excerpt suggested that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman transferred “roughly $1 billion to Israel via Azerbaijan for Kushner,” even detailing a convoluted narrative involving Dutch spies who supposedly tracked a Russian operation related to Kushner’s phone.
On Friday, The Jerusalem Post retracted an article about Cole’s findings, citing significant factual uncertainties regarding the alleged financial activities.
This is not an isolated incident for Kushner, who has pushed back against questionable media reports before. Just earlier this month, he published a detailed rebuttal to a New Yorker article that revisited well-known accusations connecting his diplomatic work during Trump’s administration to his private equity firm.
The current dispute arises as Vanity Fair and Condé Nast are navigating a challenging period, especially with the search for a new CEO underway after Roger Lynch’s resignation last month.
The magazine has faced a tumultuous year under the leadership of its new editorial director, Mark Guiducci, who received backlash for hiring political reporter Olivia Nuzzi—a controversial figure with a complicated history of journalistic ethics.
The Post has reached out to Cole and Simon & Schuster for comments regarding this situation.
