Ehud Barak

Ehud Barak (born Ehud Brog, February 12, 1942, Kibbutz Mishmar HaSharon) rose through the Israeli military to its highest operational and command positions. He headed IDF Military Intelligence (Aman), served as Chief of the General Staff from 1991 to 1995, and was Israel’s most decorated soldier. His military career included command of the elite Sayeret Matkal special forces unit. After retiring from the military, he served as Minister of Foreign Affairs (1995–1996), was elected Prime Minister in 1999, and later served as Minister of Defense and Deputy Prime Minister under Netanyahu (2007–2013).

OpenSanctions designates Barak a Politically Exposed Person (PEP) across diplomatic, military, and political categories. This classification required every financial institution handling Barak-related transactions—Deutsche Bank, Bank Leumi, Wells Fargo—to apply enhanced due diligence. Multiple banks flagged these requirements, yet the financial relationships with Epstein persisted.

Barak’s connections to Israeli private intelligence firms, particularly Black Cube (founded by former Mossad and Aman officers), were direct. He admitted to introducing Harvey Weinstein to Black Cube, though he stated the introduction was “unwitting.” Black Cube subsequently deployed covert operations against Weinstein’s accusers and journalists investigating abuse allegations.

The financial relationship between Barak and Epstein operated through at least three distinct channels, each with its own corporate vehicle and jurisdictional structure.

Wexner Foundation grants (2004–2006): The Wexner Foundation paid Barak .3 million for two commissioned research papers on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and leadership. Barak completed only one. The Foundation stated the completed work was “sufficient” to justify full payment. Epstein served as de facto CFO of the Wexner family office during this period and had authority over grant approvals, though whether he specifically authorized this payment is unconfirmed.

Carbyne/Reporty investment (2014–2019): Epstein invested in Carbyne through his Southern Trust Company (STC), which held 66.67% of the investment vehicle SUM (E.B.) Limited Partnership. Barak served as general partner with carried interest. The corporate structure was layered across jurisdictions: STC (U.S. Virgin Islands) invested into SUM (E.B.) LP (Israel), which invested into Carbyne Ltd. (Israel). When Israeli lawyers handling Carbyne’s anti-money-laundering compliance sought to identify STC’s beneficial owner, Epstein’s attorney Darren Indyke resisted disclosure. STC also wired million to ERGO (E.B. 2014) Ltd., another Barak-associated Israeli entity.

Real estate footprint: ACRIS records document Barak’s New York City property transactions: a Manhattan Club timeshare at 200 W 56th St purchased in May 2007 for $13,000 and sold in September 2019 for $100; a Tribeca property at 15 Hubert St acquired in February 2017 for $3.1 million and sold a year later for $2.57 million; and a $3.7 million Ariel West condo at 245 W 99th St purchased in April 2025. The timeshare was disposed of for a nominal amount weeks after Epstein’s July 2019 arrest.

Barak served as chairman of Carbyne (originally Reporty Homeland Security), an Israeli emergency call-handling technology company. Carbyne’s product enabled video streaming and location tracking from callers to 911 dispatch centers. The company’s Israeli defense and intelligence pedigree—and its investor base—placed it at the intersection of surveillance capability and geopolitical access.

Epstein was actively involved in Carbyne’s business operations, not merely as a passive investor. Emails show Barak forwarding Carbyne exhibition notices to Epstein and Nicole Junkermann (April 2017: “Carbyne to Exhibit in American Security Expo 2017”). Business correspondence references “Reporty advances report re New Investment” (February 2016) and “Touch Base re Reporty JE” (December 2014). Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund also invested in Carbyne, placing Israeli intelligence expertise, Epstein capital, and Silicon Valley technology in the same cap table.

In late 2018, Epstein introduced Barak to Jabor Al Thani, who brokered a meeting between Barak and former Qatari Prime Minister Hamad bin Jassim Al Thani in London (December 20, 2018, at 100 Knightsbridge). Barak offered to “minimize the Israeli profile” of the technology—an acknowledgment from a former Israeli Prime Minister that the product’s intelligence associations were a commercial liability requiring concealment. A formal Carbyne 911 presentation for Qatar followed on January 1, 2019.

The DOJ email corpus documents Barak reporting to Epstein on meetings with heads of state, central bankers, and intelligence officials in a pattern of structured, proactive intelligence sharing.

Russia (SPIEF, June 2015): Barak attended the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum and reported directly to Epstein on meetings with Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, former Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin, VTB Chairman Andrei Kostin, and Sberbank CEO Herman Gref. Barak also met an individual identified only as “SS” (likely Vladislav Surkov or Igor Sechin) who “expressed interest in finding some area for actual cooperation.” Barak wrote to Epstein: “I proposed that we will discuss it with you”—positioning Epstein as a counterparty for cooperation with senior Russian state actors.

Gulf states: Epstein brokered Barak’s access to Qatari leadership through Jabor Al Thani (introduced November 2018). Barak maintained connections to Sultan bin Sulayem (chairman of DP World, Dubai) across both social and intelligence dimensions. Epstein further brokered Barak’s connection to Tom Barrack (September 2010), who served as a bridge to Gulf sovereign wealth and later to the Trump political orbit.

U.S. political figures: Epstein arranged a dinner with Steve Bannon and Barak on March 22, 2018, with further discussions in May 2018. Tom Pritzker sought meetings with Barak through Epstein (“I want to see Ehud to hear him on Obama Kerry,” December 2016). Lawrence Summers also appeared in Barak’s network. These introductions positioned Barak as a source of Israeli strategic perspective for American political and financial elites.

The 1,411-file Barak email corpus ([email protected]) is the single largest bilateral correspondence in the investigation, exceeding the Wolff (303 emails), Kathy Ruemmler (201), and Landon Thomas Jr. (185) archives.

The scheduling process was formalized. Nili Priell Barak, Ehud’s wife, served as the dedicated intermediary for all meeting arrangements. Epstein’s assistant Lesley Groff emailed Nili directly to coordinate Barak’s schedule. When training a new assistant, Groff explained the protocol: “Jeffrey will probably want to see Ehud while he is in NY. Nili is Barak’s wife and I always email her to make/confirm appts for Ehud.”

Documented scheduling examples span years: May 2017 (“may we please scoot Ehud to 5pm”), June 2017 (“Yes he can call Ehud’s cell”), November 2017 (“Does Jeffrey’s schedule match Ehud’s in NY” leading to a breakfast or lunch on November 28). Nili also curated Israeli media for Epstein: in May 2011, she forwarded a translated Haaretz interview with Barak about “peace, politics, and Patek Philippe,” noting it “may be of interest to Jeffrey.” Epstein’s staff confirmed receipt.