Netanyahu posts nuclear blast image two days before Israel's election

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu posted on X an image appearing to be AI-generated, showing a nuclear explosion over a city, warning that nothing would remain the same if Iran obtained a nuclear weapon, two days before Israel's election.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu posted on his X account Sunday an image showing a mushroom cloud from a nuclear explosion over a city. The image appears to have been generated by artificial intelligence, and was posted two days before Israel's general election scheduled for Tuesday.

Netanyahu accompanied the image with words attributed to a person named Yuval Blumberg: "The State of Israel faces a real and tangible existential danger. If the Iranians obtain a nuclear weapon, nothing will ever be the same again." He said all other issues appeared marginal compared with the Iranian threat and the "Shiite axis."

The nuclear explosion image posted by Netanyahu

Election campaign shaped by the Iranian threat

Netanyahu stepped up his campaign activity in recent hours with a series of videos urging voters to vote for the Likud party. In one clip filmed at an Arrow missile-defense battery, he said, "Our enemies know that we are well prepared for defense and attack."

Israel's election will take place Tuesday, while opinion polls show a very close race between Netanyahu's camp and that of his main rival, Gadi Eisenkot. A large demonstration against Netanyahu was held in Tel Aviv on Saturday evening, demanding an official commission of inquiry into the failures of October 7.