PBS' Judy Woodruff apologizes, backtracks after false claim that Trump tried to block Israel ceasefire talks

PBS news anchor Judy Woodruff has issued an apology after she falsely claimed that former President Donald Trump reached out to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, urging him not to make a ceasefire deal with Hamas, and that the prolonged war would help his campaign.

During a broadcast from the Democratic National Convention on Monday, Woodruff commented, “The reporting is that former President Trump is on the phone with the prime minister of Israel urging him not to cut a deal right now because… it’s believed that would help the Harris campaign.”

Woodruff further suggested that Harris might favor President Biden working to establish a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, as it would potentially benefit the Democratic Party.

However, Woodruff has now attempted to walk back her statements on Wednesday in a post, admitting her mistake and apologizing.

“I want to clarify my remarks on the PBS News special on Monday night about the ongoing cease fire talks in the Middle East,” Woodruff wrote in her post.

“As I said, this was not based on my original reporting; I was referring to reports I had read, in Axios and Reuters, about former President Trump having spoken to the Israeli Prime Minister. In the live TV moment, I repeated the story because I hadn't seen later reporting that both sides denied it. This was a mistake and I apologize for it,” she added.

The Axios and Reuters report Woodruff referenced were from last week and claimed that Trump and Netanyahu spoke about a deal that would include a ceasefire and the release of hostages. However, Netanyahu’s office denied that a phone call ever took place.

In response to Woodruff’s comments, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement to The Jerusalem Post dismissing her accusations as a "complete lie."