Kushner Team Prepares Lawsuit Over Book Claiming $2 Billion in Secret Gulf Funds

Jared Kushner’s legal team plans to sue the author of a new book that claims he controlled more than $2 billion in hidden money from Middle Eastern leaders. The lawsuit follows the publication of an excerpt from the book, which details allegations of foreign intelligence operations and secret bank accounts tied to the former senior White House adviser.

The book, titled “Princes and Thieves: Jared Kushner and Mohamed bin Zayed’s Secret Plot to Remake the Middle East,” asserts that Kushner had access to “slush money funds” intended to buy influence within the U.S. government. The text, released Thursday in Vanity Fair, focuses on Kushner’s years as a senior adviser in the first Trump administration, a period during which he helped negotiate major deals involving Israel, the Gulf states, China, and Russia.

According to the excerpt, Dutch intelligence agents learned in 2017 that Russian hackers had compromised Kushner’s iPhone. The Dutch reportedly gained access to the device after turning a Russian spy. The account claims that when Kushner used the phone, the agents could see his screen and captured every image he viewed. The spies allegedly watched him log into a United Arab Emirates account that had received hundreds of millions of dollars from a bank in Azerbaijan.

The report further alleges that Saudi Arabia and the UAE deposited at least $2 billion into several bank accounts linked to Kushner, including one held at Israel's Central Bank. The owners of these accounts were often presented as official government bodies or charities, but the money was actually intended for off-the-books diplomatic objectives. The book claims Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman placed roughly $1 billion in at least one account, with a source describing the allocation as being for Kushner’s personal benefit.

Kushner and his attorneys issued sharp denials Thursday night. “The allegations made by this author are completely insane and never happened,” Kushner said. His attorney described the claims as “false and defamatory” and stated that they plan to pursue legal action against those responsible. Kushner’s team noted that no bank statements, wire transfer records, account numbers, or transaction dates were provided to support the story.

Steven Cheung, assistant to the president and White House director of communications, also commented on the release. Writing on X, Cheung called the book “complete fiction” and said it was fabricated by a “failed spy thriller writer.” He argued that the book presents no evidence or documentation, relying instead on “mysterious words from unnamed sources.”