Netanyahu Fined for Using Public Resources for Election Propaganda

The Chairman of the Central Elections Committee, Supreme Court Justice Noam Sohlberg, ruled on Sunday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu improperly used public resources for election campaign purposes. Sohlberg determined that a video published on Netanyahu's official social media accounts, despite its stated aim of boosting soldier morale during a visit to an IDF post in southern Lebanon, was edited to highlight the Prime Minister and government achievements, constituting election propaganda.

Sohlberg noted that the video utilized public filming and distribution resources, specifically footage from the Government Press Office, and was based entirely on the Prime Minister's visit to an IDF post in Lebanon. He stated that such a visit is not a resource available to other candidates, thus deeming the publication forbidden under the Law for the Prevention of Propaganda. The ruling also addressed other instances where public resources were allegedly used for election propaganda, ordering Netanyahu to remove them from his social media accounts.

In total, five out of six petitions concerning the matter were accepted either fully or partially. As a consequence of the ruling, Prime Minister Netanyahu was ordered to personally pay 29,000 shekels in expenses to the petitioners, including the "Votim BeYisrael" association and others.