Golan: 'The man and those around him have lost it'

Netanyahu posts AI image of nuke hitting Tel Aviv, warns of ‘2nd Holocaust’ if he’s not elected; Eisenkot: He’s hysterical

Contradicting his claims in past months that Iran's nuclear program has been 'devastated' and Tehran can no longer threaten Israel's existence, Netanyahu shares post saying there's a 'tangible existential threat'

By Stav Levaton and ToI Staff Today, 5:36 pm
An AI-generated image of a nuclear strike on Tel Aviv, posted on the X account of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on October 25, 2026 (X/Benjamin Netanyahu)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday posted an AI-generated image depicting a nuclear explosion in Tel Aviv, warning the public just two days before the election that voting for anyone other than him could expose Israelis to the danger of a “second Holocaust.”

Netanyahu was sharing the words of Yuval Bloomberg, a right-wing activist with roots in the tech sector who once wrote a book against the Oslo Accords. The post by Bloomberg, written last week, included the AI image of the large mushroom cloud rising above Tel Aviv as the city burned from a nuclear blast.

Israel faces a “real and tangible existential threat,” the post shared by Netanyahu said.

“If the Iranians acquire nuclear weapons, nothing else will matter anymore. Everything pales into insignificance in the face of the existential threat posed by Iran and the Shiite axis.”

The post went on to argue that the controversies surrounding the government, including the Qatargate affair and the efforts to pass a law that would enshrine ultra-Orthodox draft evasion, are “one giant smokescreen designed to conceal the one issue that towers above all others.”

“If two atomic bombs were to fall on central Israel, who would care about all these meaningless controversies?” it asked.

The post argued that Israel has a limited window of opportunity to confront Iran while US President Donald Trump remains in office, warning that future generations “will not forgive us if we miss this historic window of opportunity.”

It also warned that voters risk exposing their families to “the danger of a second Holocaust” if they elect a leader incapable of confronting Iran, implying that only Netanyahu is up to the task.

The post shared by Netanyahu contradicted the prime minister’s own repeated insistence that Israel and the US devastated Iran’s nuclear program during the 2025 and 2026 conflicts with Tehran. Netanyahu said at the UN last month that “we devastated Iran’s atomic weapons” in the past year. The Israeli leader had also said in a statement in March that, as a result of Israel’s strikes, Iran can “no longer threaten our existence.”

Netanyahu has recently been accused by critics of pushing for a renewal of the war against Iran to influence or delay the October 27 vote — a charge he has denied. IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir reportedly said during a recent private meeting that he did not see an operational need to strike Iran before the election.

Opposition slams ‘hysterical’ PM

Reacting to the post, Yashar party chairman and election frontrunner Gadi Eisenkot lashed out at Netanyahu, accusing him of fearmongering ahead of Tuesday’s vote.

“Netanyahu, you’re hysterical,” Eisenkot wrote on X. “As in every election campaign, it’s the same method of lies and scare tactics. This time, threatening Israeli citizens with mass destruction,” he said. “And this is after you failed to achieve the objectives of the war in Iran.

“You’ve failed. And in two days, the people of Israel will show you that at the ballot box,” he added.

Election campaign billboards featuring Yashar party chairman Gadi Eisenkot, right, and Likud party chairman Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu alongside opposition leaders are displayed along a roadside in the northern Israeli city of Haifa, ahead of Israel’s upcoming general elections, October 17, 2026. (Sharon Leibel/Flash90)

Also responding to Netanyahu’s post, Democrats chairman Yair Golan wrote on X, “The prime minister of Israel has published an image of an atomic bomb over Tel Aviv. I ask that he be kept away from social media. The man and those around him have lost it. The pressure is mounting.”

“On Tuesday, we will replace those who sow panic and restore security and sanity to Israel,” he added.

“This is the vision [Netanyahu] is painting for our children,” B’Yachad chairman Naftali Bennett said in his response to the post on X. “He claims that only when he is the prime minister can we continue to live. He tells us that if he loses, we will all die. This is a lie.”

“The State of Israel was born and grew strong long before him, and will continue long after him. The people of Israel are stronger than any politician,” Bennett added. “But he is right about one thing: his government is truly leading us to economic, social, political and security destruction.”

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid, Bennett’s No. 2 on the B’Yachad slate, said that Netanyahu was essentially telling citizens that Israel “is in danger of destruction, therefore [he has] decided to forgo American security aid, to surrender to sanctions that will destroy the economy, and to keep all the Qatari agents in [his] office.”

“All in all, it makes sense,” Lapid quipped.

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