IDF seeks clarification on electioneering ahead of Netanyahu speech to new officers

The Israel Defense Forces sought clarification over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s planned speech to graduating officers amid public pushback over concerns that he may use the opportunity for electioneering, in violation of campaign rules, Hebrew media reports said Tuesday.

The military reached out to Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara for instructions on how to act, Channel 13 and Haaretz reported.

According to Channel 13, members of the public raised concerns over the issue in light of Netanyahu’s previous campaign violations at IDF bases, which were called out by the Central Elections Committee.

Netanyahu was scheduled to address the graduation ceremony at the end of an officer training course at the military’s Bahad 1 base on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the prime minister canceled all of his events planned for the south of the country for the day, which included campaigning in Yeruham, Mitzpe Rimon, Arad and Dimona, Walla reported on Wednesday. However, he did not cancel his planned talk at the officers’ graduation ceremony.

With Israel heading into an election on Tuesday, the Central Elections Committee has repeatedly found parties violated campaigning rules, including Netanyahu and his Likud.

On Tuesday, committee chair Noam Sohlberg ruled that Netanyahu repeatedly used video clips created by the IDF spokesperson’s office in his campaign without paying for them, a violation of rules against using public resources for campaigning. He ordered Likud to pay NIS 1,500 ($485) for the clips and another NIS 6,000 ($1,940) to the state for having used the clips of military places.

Earlier this month, Sohlberg ruled that Netanyahu violated electioneering laws on five other occasions in recent months, and must remove or partially remove from official and political social media channels videos of speeches he made using public resources. Those included incidents of events filmed in IDF bases.

Netanyahu is not the only contender to have been found breaking campaign rules.

This week, the Yashar party of his chief rival Gadi Eisenkot was found to have run afoul of the rules by sending fake military draft notices to voters.

Last week, the CEC ordered Yashar to label or remove a digitally manipulated video posted by Eisenkot that depicts Netanyahu speaking by phone with late Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, the architect of the October 7, 2023, onslaught, and congratulating him.

The IDF killed Sinwar in 2024 in Gaza.

In an interim order, the CEC said the video requires a disclosure that digital means were used to create or edit it. The order follows a petition by Likud under the Elections Law (Propaganda Methods).

The video ended with a title card showing Netanyahu covering his eyes alongside the words: “Netanyahu, you were warned, and you didn’t prevent [it],” a reference to reports that Netanyahu received warnings about an impending attack before October 7, but did not act on them. Netanyahu denies the reports.