Election Committee Orders Netanyahu to Remove Campaign Video from Personal Accounts

The Chairman of the Central Elections Committee, Judge Noam Sohlberg, ruled on Tuesday that a video filmed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at an Air Force base contains elements of election propaganda and must be removed from his personal social media accounts. However, the video may remain on the official accounts of the Prime Minister's Office and the Prime Minister.

The video, published about a week ago, shows Netanyahu at an Air Force base with an Air Force plane in the background. In the video, the Prime Minister discussed security issues, including calls to withdraw from military achievements, stating, "I am not letting that happen, I will not let that happen." He also used the plural first-person pronoun throughout.

The organization "Lawyers for Promoting Proper Administration" petitioned the committee, arguing that the video used public assets for election propaganda, violating Section 2a of the Elections Law. The petition emphasized that the video was filmed on an IDF base and featured an Air Force aircraft.

Sohlberg determined that the video's content was mixed, containing both election propaganda and a public message from the state to other countries. He ruled that the location of publication was significant. He ordered the removal of the video from Netanyahu's personal accounts, distinguishing between official accounts, which convey a state message, and personal accounts, which convey a candidate's message. Since the video had already been published on official accounts, Sohlberg questioned the need for its publication on personal accounts, especially given the undisputed use of public assets.

As the petition was only partially accepted, Prime Minister Netanyahu and the Likud party were ordered to pay the petitioner 2,500 shekels in expenses.