Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday shared an AI-generated image depicting an atomic bomb falling on Tel Aviv, accompanied by a stark warning about Iran's nuclear ambitions, just two days before Israelis head to the polls. The post, which suggested that domestic political controversies pale in comparison with the threat from Tehran, drew a sharp response from Democrats party chairman Yair Golan, who accused Netanyahu of spreading panic.
Alongside the image, Netanyahu quoted Yuval Bloomberg, an Israeli writer and political commentator best known for his book The Oslo Trap, which critically examines the 1993 Oslo Accords and their consequences for Israeli security.
Two days to election, Netanyahu posts image of atomic bomb over Tel Aviv: ‘Nothing else will matter’
(Photo: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Instagram account)
"The State of Israel faces a real and tangible existential threat," Bloomberg wrote. "If the Iranians obtain nuclear weapons, nothing else will matter anymore. Everything is so trivial compared with the existential danger posed by Iran and the Shiite axis."
The post also repeated the argument that Israel has only two more years under U.S. President Donald Trump's administration to address the Iranian threat, portraying disputes dominating Israeli politics as distractions from the country's most pressing security challenge.
"Qatar, the ultra-Orthodox, Urich, military conscription, warnings. It's all one giant smokescreen designed to conceal the one issue that towers above everything else," the post read. "If two atomic bombs fall on central Israel, who will care about all these meaningless controversies?"
The image and accompanying message came as Israel entered the final stretch of its election campaign, with voters set to cast their ballots Tuesday, October 27. Netanyahu has emphasized the threat from Iran throughout the campaign, arguing that confronting Tehran's nuclear ambitions must remain Israel's overriding national priority.
Golan, a former IDF deputy chief of staff and chairman of the Democrats party, condemned the post and accused the prime minister of attempting to frighten voters.
"The prime minister of Israel has posted an image of an atomic bomb falling on Tel Aviv," Golan said. "I ask that he be kept away from social media. The man and those around him have lost it. The pressure is mounting."
Golan also linked his criticism directly to the upcoming election, saying: "On Tuesday, we will replace those spreading panic and restore security and sanity to Israel."