Drones, moans and groans: Hezbollah attacks PM’s home; petty politics continue unintercepted
UAV explosion close to Netanyahu house in Caesarea prompts a fresh round of cynical domestic bickering from politicians, journalists and memers
“Israel has no foreign policy, only domestic politics,” according to a saying attributed to Henry Kissinger.
This couldn’t be more reflective of some of the reactions to Hezbollah’s drone targeting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s home in Caesarea on Saturday.
The prime minister and his wife were not present at the house and no injuries were reported. The IDF said the drone was one of three launched from Lebanon, and that the other two were shot down.
And yet, despite this escalation against the elected premier, some political leaders, journalists, and social media influencers rendered it as a personal saga about the Netanyahus and their public image.
Using inflammatory, cynical, sometimes humorous posts, some reactions invoked perceptions of the couple as power-hungry greedy rulers, while others gave new life to the view that he was a mere victim of the legal system and political rivals that sought to bring him down.
Together, they constitute a reminder that daily politics continue unabated even during war, and also that Israelis resort to humor and other less benign means of letting off steam to cope with their reality.
The attempt by Iran’s proxy Hezbollah to assassinate me and my wife today was a grave mistake.
This will not deter me or the State of Israel from continuing our just war against our enemies in order to secure our future.
I say to Iran and its proxies in its axis of evil:…
— Benjamin Netanyahu – בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) October 19, 2024
An assassination attempt on ‘me and my wife’
Netanyahu himself described the attack not as one targeting a head of government, but rather highlighted it as an assassination attempt on “me and my wife.”
He was quickly echoed by Shas party leader Aryeh Deri, a close Netanyahu ally whose electorate consists of hardcore Netanyahu supporters, who tweeted his support Sunday: “Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife, stay strong and courageous.”
The Likud party followed suit and weaponized the attack against Netanyahu’s political rivals, accusing Opposition Leader Yair Lapid and National Unity chief Benny Gantz of failing to condemn it.
“At the moment of truth, they’ve failed to overcome petty politics and big egos,” said a statement issued Sunday by the Likud. “They chose to remain silent, and as we know silence is like agreement.”
A property tax issue
Both Gantz and The Democrats party head Yair Golan chose to characterize the attack as yet another instance in which Netanyahu was simply looking out for his property, invoking his public image as greedy and self-serving.
“At a time when hundreds of rockets are being launched at the citizens of Israel … citizens are being murdered and soldiers are falling — the Prime Minister is busy with himself and the property tax,” the National Unity party stated Sunday.
This came after the Kan public broadcaster had reported that property tax officials and a gardener visited Netanyahu’s home following the attack.
Golan, whose Democrats party is a merger of Labor and Meretz, retorted during an interview Saturday on “Meet the Press,” “If renovating the house without it being hit by a drone wasn’t a problem, there wouldn’t be a problem afterward. And the state will pay, don’t worry.”
Several left-leaning journalists similarly chose to narrow the story down to the material damage the attack might have caused to Netanyahu’s house.
Haaretz journalist Chaim Levinson commented on a report whereby Director General of the Prime Minister’s Office Yossi Shelley, who also heads the Tekuma administration responsible for rebuilding the Gaza enclave, had already met with tax officials, cynically juxtaposing it with the slower treatment ordinary residents receive.
“Kudos to Yossi Shelley for quickly addressing every single house destroyed or damaged throughout the north. Personal, dedicated treatment for all,” said Levinson.
Fellow Haaretz journalist Uri Misgav, a long-time critic of Netanyahu who has extensively written about the prime minister’s alleged use of public funds to cover personal expenses, assailed the censor’s imposed restrictions in covering the story while similarly downplaying concerns of material damages as a result of the attack.
“I find it somewhat funny that since yesterday, the military censor has instructed not to report where exactly the drone struck in Caesarea, even though property tax officials have already arrived at the scene,” he posted to Facebook.
Taking a swipe at Netanyahu’s legal and political adversaries
Moti Kastel, a journalist for Channel 14 considered by many to be a Netanyahu mouthpiece, chose to blame the premier’s perceived nemeses for the supposed tragedy averted at the last minute.
He tweeted: “This would be a good time to mention that Attorneys General Gali Baharav-Miara and Shlomit Barnea Farago — who are systematically obstructing and delaying vital requests for reinforcement at the prime minister’s residences – are risking his and his wife’s lives while leaking it to the media as ‘protecting and safeguarding’ public funds.”
Attorney-General Baharav-Miara oversees the prosecution of Netanyahu’s corruption charges; Barnea Farago is the legal adviser at the Prime Minister’s office.
Journalist and social media influencer Yotam Zimri took a swipe at Lapid for initially not condemning the failed attempt to target Netanyahu, saying that Lapid, “Doesn’t comment on failures.”
Humorous fusion
And then there are the regular Israelis, who are coping with the news through cynical, sometimes dark, humor, fusing together unrelated stories.
One Facebook user posted a meme invoking Netanyahu’s attempt to rename the war as The War of Revival.
It depicts the Netanyahus standing in their swimming pool, saying: “If you have a problem renovating our pool during the war, we’ll call it the Revival Pool.”
Another user propagated a cynical conspiracy theory suggesting Netanyahu had hoped for his home to be destroyed, presumably for reasons relating to property tax.
A meme posted by this user describes the couple as a frog and a pig, inspired by the Brothers Grimm fairy tales. As Netanyahu is being informed that a drone is heading for the residence and is being assured that it will be intercepted, he clarifies that it is the residence he wants to be intercepted.
הַקּוֹנְסְטְרוּקְצִיָּה שֶׁל הַקּוֹנְסְפִּירַצְיָה לקראת צאת שלושה ביביסטים הערב עם מבול תאוריות הקונספירציה על הירי…
Posted by גיל נתן on Saturday, October 19, 2024
A different user altered the campaign slogan aiming to bring back the hostages held by Hamas in Gaza. Depicting the Netanyahu family as homeless in the wake of the attack, the meme says: “Bring Us Home Now!”
