Likud demands removal of videos about Netanyahu in Israel — Jerusalem Post
In Israel, the Likud party has filed a petition against Gadi Eisenkot and his Yashar party, demanding the removal of three campaign videos about Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s actions ahead of October 7. The petition was submitted to the chairman of Israel’s Central Elections Committee, Supreme Court Justice Noam Sohlberg.
Likud is also asking for a temporary order to remove the videos while the case is being considered. The petition was filed on behalf of the party by lawyers Ilan Bombach and Inbal Amit.
Claims regarding the use of sources
As The Jerusalem Post reports, Likud claims that the videos were distributed on Eisenkot’s Facebook, Instagram, X/Twitter and TikTok pages. Each video begins with an image of Netanyahu and a question asking whether he remembers this, and ends with the Yashar party logo.
The first video contains text stating that two months before October 7, the head of Israel’s Shin Bet security service allegedly warned Netanyahu about war, citing Ynet News. Likud claims that the wording about two months before the events was not in the original article, and that the mention of the warning was used in a different context.
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The second video states that two weeks before October 7, Netanyahu’s goal was a “quiet holiday period,” citing N12 News. Likud says that such wording was not in the source and that the discussions mentioned in it took place in September 2023.
Demand to remove the videos
The third video contains an excerpt from Netanyahu’s 2023 interview with the program “The Patriots.” Responding to a question about his assessment of the military threat, he said that he considered it exaggerated. Likud says that the video does not include the continuation of the answer, in which Netanyahu spoke about Israel’s readiness to counter the threat from all directions.
The party believes that the editing and presentation of the materials may constitute “unfair interference” in its election campaign under Article 13 of Israel’s Law on Election Campaign Methods. Likud emphasizes that the videos may quickly gain views and spread on social media, while their subsequent removal would not eliminate the consequences of their distribution.
Before filing the petition, Likud demanded that Eisenkot remove the videos by 10:00 on September 17. According to the party, Eisenkot’s lawyer confirmed receipt of the demand but said that he would not provide a response by that time. No decision in the case has yet been made, and the claims outlined in the petition remain Likud’s position.
