Gal Luft

Gal Luft
Luft at the Web Summit 2017 at Altice Arena in Lisbon, Portugal
Born (1966-05-26) May 26, 1966 (age 58)
Haifa, Israel
NationalityIsraeli American
EducationBar-Ilan University (BA)
Tel Aviv University (MA)
Johns Hopkins University (PhD)
Scientific career
ThesisThe Cultural Dimension of Multinational Military Cooperation (2003)
Doctoral advisorEliot A. Cohen

Gal Luft (born May 26, 1966) is an Israeli-American think-tank director, author and alleged foreign agent. Luft was a lieutenant colonel in the Israel Defense Forces, and is the executive director of the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security and cofounder of the Set America Free Coalition.[1][2]

Luft was arrested in Cyprus on February 17, 2023, on a warrant issued by Interpol on U.S. charges of weapons trafficking. After being released on bail, he went missing on March 28; he subsequently fled and went into hiding.[3][4][5][6] On July 10, 2023, the US Justice Department unsealed the indictment for this arrest, dated November 2022, accusing Luft of eight charges including acting as an unregistered foreign agent of Chinese entities under the US Foreign Agents Registration Act and violating trade sanctions against Iran.[7][8] Among the indictment's allegations is that Luft, at the behest of Chinese entities, recruited and paid an unnamed adviser to then-president-elect Donald Trump to adopt pro-Chinese positions.[9][10][11]

In July 2023, Luft claimed he had made allegations of corruption by US president Joe Biden's son, Hunter Biden to the FBI and US Justice Department. These allegations were made in March 2019 involving improper financial arrangements with the Chinese energy company CEFC. He further claimed the criminal charges against him were politically motivated reprisals for his allegations.[12][13] In September 2024, federal prosecutors stated that Luft was re-arrested and will be extradited to the United States.[14]

  1. ^ Heffernan, Tim (19 Nov 2007). "Four Ways to Solve the Energy Crisis". Esquire. Archived from the original on 23 May 2023. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  2. ^ "Colloquium Speaker: Gal Luft". Johns Hopkins University. 28 January 2005. Archived from the original on 17 October 2021. Retrieved 11 July 2023. He holds degrees in international relations, international economics, Middle East studies and strategic studies and a doctorate in strategic studies from the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), Johns Hopkins University
  3. ^ "Israeli professor arrested on suspicion of arms trafficking to China, Libya". The Jerusalem Post. February 19, 2023. Archived from the original on July 11, 2023. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
  4. ^ Meyer, Josh (10 July 2023). "US says missing GOP whistleblower is arms trafficker, Chinese agent". USA Today. Archived from the original on 19 July 2023. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  5. ^ "Israeli professor wanted in the US for weapons trafficking goes missing in Cyprus". The Times of Israel. Archived from the original on 23 May 2023. Retrieved 17 July 2023.
  6. ^ Marathovouniotis, Stelios (19 April 2023). "Internationally-wanted Israeli professor flees Cyprus while on pretrial release". Cyprus Weekly. Archived from the original on 1 June 2023. Retrieved 17 July 2023.
  7. ^ Kane, Paul (July 11, 2023). "Republicans say they would like to call witness despite criminal indictment". The Washington Post.
  8. ^ "U.S. Attorney Announces Charges Against Co-Director Of Think Tank For Acting As An Unregistered Foreign Agent, Trafficking In Arms, Violating U.S. Sanctions Against Iran, And Making False Statements To Federal Agents". U.S. Department of Justice. U.S. Attorney's Office: Southern District of New York. 10 July 2023. Archived from the original on 11 July 2023. Retrieved 17 July 2023.
  9. ^ Aaron, Blake (July 15, 2023). "Indictment paints tale of Chinese interests and 2016 Trump campaign". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 18, 2023.
  10. ^ Farivar, Masood (July 10, 2023). "US Charges Think Tank Leader With Working on Behalf of China". Voice of America. Archived from the original on July 11, 2023. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
  11. ^ Matza, Max (10 July 2023). "US think tank founder charged with acting as Chinese agent". BBC News. Archived from the original on 11 July 2023. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  12. ^ Lee, Ella (10 July 2023). "Think tank leader who claims to have given FBI info on Hunter Biden charged by Justice Department". The Hill. Archived from the original on 11 July 2023. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  13. ^ Cohen, Luc (11 July 2023). "Head of US think tank charged with acting as Chinese agent". Reuters. Archived from the original on 11 July 2023. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  14. ^ Cohen, Luc (9 September 2024). "Head of US think tank to be extradited on China agent charges". Reuters. Retrieved 9 September 2024.