Stephen Walt
Overview
Stephen Walt co-authored The Israel Lobby — a well-known anti-Israel book that accuses pro-Israel lobbyists of wielding unparalleled influence over American foreign policy.
Walt regularly publishes articles expounding on this theory, suggesting that the relationship between Israel and the United States has been a key factor in inspiring acts of terrorism — including the 9/11 attacks — and advocating for cooler relations between Washington and Israel.
Walt also participated in a controversial conference at Harvard University (Harvard) that focussed on the topic of the dissolution of Israel.
He has accused Israel of apartheid and ethnic cleansing, claiming that Operation Protective Edge (OPE) was a conspiracy of the Israeli government intended to manipulate Palestinian politics and “colonize the West Bank”.
Walt is a professorof international affairs at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government.
The book received widespread criticism for its conspiratorial anti-Semitic premise.
Walt is a regular contributor to Foreign Policy, where he has published numerous articles expounding on this conspiracy theory.
In response to criticism over his claims, Walt published an article on November 1, 2013 in which he defended his argument, explaining how AIPAC and other pro-Israel lobby groups covertly influence American foreign policy.
On January 8, 2016 Walt published an article describing how the relationship between the U.S. and Israel is the root of American foreign policy concerns including terrorism and advocated for the cooling of relations between the states. Walt stated, “unconditional U.S. support for Israel was undermining America’s image in the world, making the terrorism problem worse, and allowing Tel Aviv to continue its self-destructive effort to create a ‘greater Israel’ at the expense of the Palestinians… achieving a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians required that the United States pressure both sides instead of acting as ‘Israel’s lawyer’.”
In an article published on March 31, 2015, Walt cited the relationship with Israel as a key factor in causing the September 11 terrorist attacks.
On March 2, 2015 Walt published an article in which he described a conspiratorial relationship wherein AIPAC controls internal American politics. Walt argued, “For years now, nearly every politician and ambitious foreign-policy wonk in the United States has had to toe the AIPAC line, because your career would suffer if you didn’t… Nothing has really changed since then, and anyone who questions the special relationship or the role the lobby plays in preserving it is still likely to be accused of anti-Semitism (if a gentile) or self-hatred (if Jewish).”
Despite the university’s insistence that it was an entirely student-run initiative, not officially supported by the institution, several professors took leading roles in the planning and execution of the event.
Walt was a leading participant at the conference.
Again in another article, Walt accused Israel of “ethnically cleansing hundreds of thousands of Palestinians.”
In the same article, Walt posited that Operation Protective Edge was not defensive or responsive at all, but rather, a ploy by the Israeli government to manipulate Palestinian politics and “to protect its longstanding effort to colonize the West Bank.”
Walt attributed all blame for the operation to Israel, claiming that rockets shot by Gaza into Israel were, in fact, “virtually non-existent.”
Walt regularly publishes articles expounding on this theory, suggesting that the relationship between Israel and the United States has been a key factor in inspiring acts of terrorism — including the 9/11 attacks — and advocating for cooler relations between Washington and Israel.
Walt also participated in a controversial conference at Harvard University (Harvard) that focussed on the topic of the dissolution of Israel.
He has accused Israel of apartheid and ethnic cleansing, claiming that Operation Protective Edge (OPE) was a conspiracy of the Israeli government intended to manipulate Palestinian politics and “colonize the West Bank”.
Walt is a professorof international affairs at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government.
Anti-Zionist Conspiracy Theory
Walt is co-author of the “The Israel Lobby”, a controversial book accusing pro-Israel lobbying groups — the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) in particular — of bearing a disproportionately significant influence over American foreign policy.The book received widespread criticism for its conspiratorial anti-Semitic premise.
Walt is a regular contributor to Foreign Policy, where he has published numerous articles expounding on this conspiracy theory.
In response to criticism over his claims, Walt published an article on November 1, 2013 in which he defended his argument, explaining how AIPAC and other pro-Israel lobby groups covertly influence American foreign policy.
On January 8, 2016 Walt published an article describing how the relationship between the U.S. and Israel is the root of American foreign policy concerns including terrorism and advocated for the cooling of relations between the states. Walt stated, “unconditional U.S. support for Israel was undermining America’s image in the world, making the terrorism problem worse, and allowing Tel Aviv to continue its self-destructive effort to create a ‘greater Israel’ at the expense of the Palestinians… achieving a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians required that the United States pressure both sides instead of acting as ‘Israel’s lawyer’.”
In an article published on March 31, 2015, Walt cited the relationship with Israel as a key factor in causing the September 11 terrorist attacks.
On March 2, 2015 Walt published an article in which he described a conspiratorial relationship wherein AIPAC controls internal American politics. Walt argued, “For years now, nearly every politician and ambitious foreign-policy wonk in the United States has had to toe the AIPAC line, because your career would suffer if you didn’t… Nothing has really changed since then, and anyone who questions the special relationship or the role the lobby plays in preserving it is still likely to be accused of anti-Semitism (if a gentile) or self-hatred (if Jewish).”
Participation in Controversial Conference
In March of 2012, Harvard hosted a highly controversial conference entitled “The One-State Conference: Israel/Palestine and the One State Solution,” whose subject was the dissolution of Israel as a Jewish state.Despite the university’s insistence that it was an entirely student-run initiative, not officially supported by the institution, several professors took leading roles in the planning and execution of the event.
Walt was a leading participant at the conference.
Demonizing Israel
In an article published on May 25 2011, Walt accused Israel of ethnic cleansing and apartheid.Again in another article, Walt accused Israel of “ethnically cleansing hundreds of thousands of Palestinians.”
In the same article, Walt posited that Operation Protective Edge was not defensive or responsive at all, but rather, a ploy by the Israeli government to manipulate Palestinian politics and “to protect its longstanding effort to colonize the West Bank.”
Walt attributed all blame for the operation to Israel, claiming that rockets shot by Gaza into Israel were, in fact, “virtually non-existent.”
Social Media and Weblinks
Twitter:https://twitter.com/stephenWalt
University Page: https://www.hks.harvard.edu/faculty/stephen-walt
- Status:
- Professor
- University:
- Harvard
- Organizations:
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- Mohammad Hamad,
- Ajantha Subramanian,
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- Last Modified:
- 05/04/2026
Photos & Screenshots
13 images
Infamous Quotes
“For years now, nearly every politician and ambitious foreign-policy wonk in the United States has had to toe the AIPAC line, because your career would suffer if you didn’t...Nothing has really changed since then, and anyone who questions the special relationship or the role the lobby plays in preserving it is still likely to be accused of anti-Semitism (if a gentile) or self-hatred (if Jewish).”
“Unconditional U.S. support for Israel was undermining America’s image in the world, making the terrorism problem worse, and allowing Tel Aviv to continue its self-destructive effort to create a ‘greater Israel’ at the expense of the Palestinians...achieving a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians required that the United States pressure both sides instead of acting as ‘Israel’s lawyer’.”
