Story perspectives

Netanyahu's AI Ad Sparks Outcry Over Son Look-Alike

7/24/2026

Summary

Story summary

On 21 July 2026 Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu posted an AI ad showing Minister Gadi Eisenkot reject youth and embrace Mansour Abbas.
Critics condemned the ad, noting the figure resembled Eisenkot’s son Gal, killed in a Gaza tunnel explosion in December 2023.
Netanyahu’s team issued a version replacing the youth with a woman and adding a caption, though a Knesset law passed before requiring AI-generated campaign material to be labeled was not applied.

History

Historical Context

Access to deep-fake tools opened in 2018 with FakeApp, letting BuzzFeed and Jordan Peele create a synthetic Barack Obama video in April 2018. A June 2019 House Intelligence hearing flagged election risks, and a Belgian deepfake of Prime Minister Sophie Wilmès drew over 100,000 views in April 2020. The 2026 Israeli ad starring Defense Minister Gadi Eisenkot mirrors this decade-long controversy, driving labeling demands.

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Story summary

On 21 July 2026 Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu posted an AI ad showing Minister Gadi Eisenkot reject youth and embrace Mansour Abbas.
Critics condemned the ad, noting the figure resembled Eisenkot’s son Gal, killed in a Gaza tunnel explosion in December 2023.
Netanyahu’s team issued a version replacing the youth with a woman and adding a caption, though a Knesset law passed before requiring AI-generated campaign material to be labeled was not applied.

1 / 2