Why are reports of Benjamin Netanyahu’s death circulating on social media?
Unconfirmed claims regarding the death of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have been circulating rapidly on social media in recent days.
These claims have gained momentum after the recent press conference, however, the Israeli media has declared them false. These claims circulating on various social media platforms state that Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has been killed in an Iranian air strike during the Iran-Israel war.
Some similar social media posts also claimed that his brother Edo Netanyahu and Israel’s Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Governor were injured.
Many of these posts were shared with videos of airstrikes and AI-generated images, while some claims were also supported by comments from former US intelligence officer Scott Ritter.
In addition, based on the speech style and gestures of the Israeli Prime Minister in the recently released video of a press conference, social media users have declared the said video to be AI-generated.
According to users, the Israeli Prime Minister has been killed in an Iranian airstrike, so the Israeli media has released an AI video of Netanyahu, in which Netanyahu’s 6 fingers are visible.
The reports cited by Tasnim News Agency did not provide evidence of an attack on Netanyahu or confirmation of his injuries, citing only a few circumstantial factors, including the absence of recent videos of the prime minister and increased security around his residence.
The speculation was also fueled by the fact that it had been almost 3 days since the last video was posted on Netanyahu’s personal channel, while it had been almost 4 days since new images were released, compared to the usual rate of at least 1 and sometimes up to 3 videos per day.
Further reports suggest that security around Netanyahu’s residence has been tightened due to concerns about possible drone attacks.
Observers have also pointed out that a planned visit to Israel by US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and US special envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff has been canceled.
On the other hand, a statement issued by the French presidential Elysee Palace released the transcript of a telephone conversation between French President Emmanuel Macron and Netanyahu, but the date of the conversation was not specified.
Israeli authorities and international media have called these claims baseless, and Netanyahu’s office has dismissed the reports of his death as fake news.
According to Israeli media, Netanyahu is performing his official duties. On March 10, he visited Israel’s National Health Command Center, while on March 11, he inspected the Ashdod port where he reviewed maritime trade activities during Operation Roaring Line, and held a press conference on March 12. Videos of both visits have also been publicly released.
Israel media states that Images circulating online that claimed to show Netanyahu after the attack were later revealed to have been created using artificial intelligence, while the claim that the Israeli Prime Minister’s six fingers were visible in a recent press conference video is also baseless.
Read also:Iran launches Khyber missiles at Netanyahu’s office and Israeli Air Force HQ
