PoliticsJared Kushner Denies Story He Benefits From Diplomatic Middle East Work
Jared Kushner spoke out after CNN published an article about his work.
Oct. 5 2026, Updated 8:14 a.m. ET
Jared Kushner, son-in-law to President Donald Trump and special envoy for peace, pushed back hard against CNN reporting about potential conflicts of interest in his work for the White House.
'Kushner Has Skirted Deeper Scrutiny of This Potential Conflict of Interest'
CNN reported that Jared Kushner's private equity company held a large stake in an Israeli firm that backed military campaigns.
CNN reported in its original October 1 article, “At the same time Jared Kushner has acted as a key negotiator in the war in Gaza, his private equity company, Affinity Partners, has held the largest stake in an Israeli firm backing businesses involved in Israel’s military campaigns … Kushner has skirted deeper scrutiny of this potential conflict of interest by acting as a volunteer envoy, rather than accepting a government job that would require him to disclose his finances.”
'CNN Published a Deeply Misleading Story and Headline'
Jared Kushner and President Trump's daughter Ivanka Trump have been married since 2009.
Kushner, 45, posted an extensive response on X, claiming innocence and questioning the reporting.
CNN published a deeply misleading story and headline suggesting that my diplomatic work in the Middle East somehow benefited investments in Israeli defense companies.
But CNN’s own reporting says otherwise, stating: “CNN found no indication that Kushner’s actions as a diplomat directly affected the investments reviewed.”
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Jared Kushner fiercely defended both his own company and the Israeli company CNN investigated.
Kushner, who is married to President Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump, went on to question CNN’s definition of the deal.
“Phoenix is not a defense company,” he wrote. “It is one of Israel’s largest publicly traded financial institutions, highly regulated and managing approximately $220 billion across thousands of investments. Think of Phoenix as the Israeli equivalent of Vanguard or Fidelity. It manages the retirement savings of millions of Israelis. The savers don’t choose the individual investments, and neither do I. I have no role in deciding what Phoenix buys or sells. It has performed very well for Affinity and our investors, up more than five times since our initial investment.”
Jared Kushner has been closely involved in peace negotiations that include Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Donald Trump.
He went on to defend Affinity itself.
“Affinity is an SEC-registered investment firm. Our investment in Phoenix is public and dates to before President Trump was re-elected and before I returned to public service. Affinity does not own the defense companies highlighted in CNN’s story. Those facts make for a less provocative headline, but a much more accurate story," he stated.
Jared concluded: “Misleading stories will not distract me from the work President Trump asked me to do: help end wars, bring people together and pursue peace. That work is too important.”
On CNN, former White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said the allegations matched her experiences with Jared during the first Trump term, saying, "I recall back in our Trump administration, he had his hands in everything."
