Reports of Shimon Peres’ Death Are Greatly Exaggerated
Image by Getty Images
Retired Israeli president Shimon Peres says he’s still alive and kicking.
False reports flew around on social media Monday that he had died, so he took to Facebook to reassure the public.
“I wish to thank the citizens of Israel for the support, concern and interest, and wish to clarify that the rumors are false. I’m continuing with my daily schedule as usual to do whatever I can to assist The State of Israel and its citizens,” he said in a post.
Peres is 92. He retired as president of Israel in 2014 after a more than half a century in public life.
Rumors about Peres’ supposed death were first found on Whatsapp groups, and snowballed from there.
It is believed that the death of someone else named Shimon Peres may have sparked the rumors.
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.
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’ve started our Passover Fundraising Drive, and we need 1,800 readers like you to step up to support the Forward by April 21. Members of the Forward board are even matching the first 1,000 gifts, up to $70,000.
This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism, because every dollar goes twice as far.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
