Image by Getty Images

By Nathan Guttman November 30, 2016

An Australian billionaire could be the unlikely missing link connecting Israel’s prime minister, Donald Trump’s new pick for Treasury Secretary, and pop superstar Mariah Carey.

James Packer, the Sydney-based media mogul, now embroiled in an alleged scandal case involving Prime Minister Netanyahu and his son Yair, was also a business partner of Steven Mnuchin, who was tapped Wednesday to serve on Trump’s cabinet.

Packer and Mnuchin had merged their entertainment businesses three years ago and the joint company produced some of Hollywood’s biggest blockbusters including “Gravity,” “Mad Max” and “Batman v Superman.”

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

At the same time, Packer also became close to Israel’s Netanyahu. He purchased a house next to the Netanyahu family’s private residency in Caesarea and began spending time with the prime minister, his wife and children. According to press reports from the past week, Israeli police had recently looked into allegations that Packer showered gifts on Netanyahu and his family, including hosting the prime minister’s son Yair on his private jet and in luxury hotel suites.

Adding some more stardust to this power-triangle is Mariah Carey, Packer’s ex-girlfriend. One of the gifts Packer generously gave Netanyahu and his wife Sarah were a set of tickets to Carey’s show in Israel. Just in case the Israeli prime minister couldn’t put his hands on a couple of tickets without help.

Contact Nathan Guttman at [email protected] or on Twitter @nathanguttman

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. We’re near the end of our Passover Fundraising Drive, and we have a very ambitious goal of $127,000 by April 21.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a Passover gift today!

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Make a Passover Gift Today!

$90 $180

$360

Other amount