WATCH: Netanyahu Blasts “Insane” Conspiracy Theory Blaming Israel for Charlie Kirk Assassination

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tore into the “insane” and “absurd” internet rumors suggesting Israel was somehow behind the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, a staunchly pro-Israel figure gunned down in Utah this week.

Appearing on Newsmax with host Greta Van Susteren Thursday, Netanyahu was asked to respond to the online chatter, which has spread in fringe corners of social media. Van Susteren herself prefaced the question by calling it “the absurdity of it.”

“That’s insane. That’s insane. Israel also changes the orbit of the Moon. Israel pushes the Sun,” he said with visible exasperation. “The whole thing is not only insane, it’s so absurd, so stupid, and so ridiculous. I can’t believe that people are saying that.”

“They just found the perpetrator, they’ll get to the bottom of this,” he said. “When you hate Jews, when you hate the Jewish state, you’re willing to say anything and promote all these absurd rumors.”

Netanyahu placed the conspiracy theory in a long, dark lineage of antisemitic slander. “In the horrific Middle Ages, the worst things were said about Jews you could possibly believe. We were poisoning the wells, we were drinking the blood of Christian children, you name it,” he said. “These things continued up to the Holocaust.”

The prime minister said Kirk himself had warned him about the dangers of unchecked lies. “Charlie Kirk said to me, ‘You have to fight the slander. These untruths, these vilifications have consequences.’ And he was right,” Netanyahu recalled.

Kirk, 31, was killed Wednesday while speaking at Utah Valley University. His death has shaken conservative circles, where he was celebrated as a close ally of former President Donald Trump and an outspoken defender of Israel.

“He was fighting in the battlefield of ideas, and I think he was winning. He was gonna win, that’s why they shot him,” Netanyahu said. “I hope they don’t silence him.”

Netanyahu expressed confidence that the truth would outlast the lies. “I don’t think people will give in to these ridiculous, ridiculous lies,” he said. “More importantly, I think that his legacy of defending free speech, defending freedom, defending the right to defend yourself, and Israel’s right to defend itself… this is a legacy that will endure.”