--- description: A cartoon published by the left-leaning Israeli daily 'Haaretz' has sparked controversy over its blunt depiction of U.S.-Israeli relations title: Provocative Israeli Cartoon on Deteriorating Relations With U.S. Evokes 9/11 image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Provocative Israeli Cartoon on Deteriorating Relations With U.S. Evokes 9/11  by [Noah Rayman](/author/noah-rayman/)  ## Noah Rayman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 30, 2014 7:33 PM CUT  by [Noah Rayman](/author/noah-rayman/)  ## Noah Rayman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 30, 2014 7:33 PM CUT A cartoon [published](https://twitter.com/haaretzcom/status/527684198358716416 "undefined") Thursday by the left-leaning Israeli daily _Haaretz_ has sparked controversy for its blunt attempt to depict deteriorating relations between conservative Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Barack Obama. The cartoon shows Netanyahu flying an airplane aimed at a tall building topped with an American flag, which resembles one of the Twin Towers that were attacked on Sept. 11, 2001. > [](https://twitter.com/haaretzcom/status/527684198358716416) The cartoonist, Amos Biderman, [told the _Times of Israel_](http://www.timesofisrael.com/haaretz-cartoon-of-netanyahu-as-911-pilot-ignites-controversy/ "undefined") that the image was intended to imply that Netanyahu was leading to “a disaster in Israel-U.S. relations on the scale of 9/11.” But it has [drawn criticism](http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/10/30/the-shocking-cartoon-depicting-benjamin-netanyahu-that-appeared-in-a-left-wing-newspaper-depicts/ "undefined") in the U.S. and in Israel, with Vox [writing](http://www.vox.com/2014/10/30/7131253/israeli-cartoonist-netanyahu-september-11-chickenshit-haaretz "undefined") that “it so breaches the very basics of good taste that it is astounding.” Relations between Netanyahu and the White House have been notoriously poor, and the Israeli leader moved earlier this week to accelerate planning for new settler homes in East Jerusalem despite the Obama Administration’s opposition. On Tuesday, the _Atlantic_ [quoted one unnamed White House official](http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2014/10/the-crisis-in-us-israel-relations-is-officially-here/382031/ "undefined") calling Netanyahu “chickens–t.” White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest [later said](http://time.com/3546531/white-house-boehner-spar-over-expletive/ "undefined") the official’s comment did not “accurately reflect at all” the administration’s view about Israel. _Read next:_ [_Sweden Becomes the First E.U. Member to Recognize a Palestinian State_](http://time.com/3547418/sweden-becomes-the-first-e-u-member-to-recognize-the-state-of-palestine/?xid=time%5Freadnext "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3548407/israel-netanyahu-political-cartoon/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3548407/israel-netanyahu-political-cartoon/"},"headline":"Provocative Israeli Cartoon on Deteriorating Relations With U.S. Evokes 9/11","datePublished":"2014-10-30T19:33:58.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T11:07:35.605Z","description":"It was published days after a White House official reportedly called Netanyahu \"chickens--t\"","url":"https://time.com/3548407/israel-netanyahu-political-cartoon/","keywords":["Israel","Media","President Barack Obama","United States"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Noah Rayman","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/noah-rayman/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3548407/israel-netanyahu-political-cartoon/","name":"Provocative Israeli Cartoon on Deteriorating Relations With U.S. Evokes 9/11"}}]}] ```