"Data from the social media monitoring tool Rolli IQ showed "Netanyahu is dead" appeared 218,580 times March 9-17 across X, BlueSky, Reddit, YouTube, Threads and Facebook. But there is no credible evidence that Netanyahu is dead."
"Rumors of Netanyahu's death were fueled by both real news and out-of-context videos, fake images and accusations that the Israeli government was using artificial intelligence to deceive the public about Netanyahu's health and whereabouts."
"The Agence France-Presse reported that the videos spreading on social media were unrelated to the Netanyahus, and there have been no legitimate reports of either brother's death. The rumor of an Iranian attack on Netanyahu's home appeared to stem from the Tasnim News Agency, an outlet linked to the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps."
During the second week of the Iran-Israel war, social media platforms were flooded with unsubstantiated claims that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had died. The rumors were fueled by a combination of factors including fake images, out-of-context videos, and accusations of AI-generated deception. Data showed "Netanyahu is dead" appeared over 218,000 times across major platforms between March 9-17. The false narrative originated from claims about Netanyahu's brother Iddo being killed in Iranian strikes, followed by cancelled U.S. envoy visits and Netanyahu's absence from a military meeting. Iran's state news agency reported threats against Netanyahu, amplifying speculation. However, no credible evidence supports any of these death claims, with fact-checkers confirming the videos and reports were either unrelated or fabricated.
Read at Poynter
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