“Truth or facts don’t matter anymore. I make fake news myself.” That is the explosive, almost unbelievable admission recently made by Eli Hazan, a senior Israeli communications official. Video of his confession has spread rapidly on social media, sparking intense controversy.
According to Middle East Monitor, the video has already been viewed more than a million times on X (formerly Twitter), drawing millions of likes and thousands of reposts and comments. In the video, Hazan is heard openly saying that he creates this kind of fake news specifically to respond to opponents. He defends following the controversial communications tactics of US President Donald Trump in doing so.
Like Trump, Hazan views social media as a battlefield. In his view, the truthfulness or accuracy of information doesn’t matter when it comes to winning an information war against an adversary. Hazan is a longtime, influential communications figure within the ruling Likud party. He has served as a spokesperson for Benjamin Netanyahu and as Israel’s ambassador to Singapore. Netanyahu had even planned to appoint him director of the Government Press Office (GPO).
Global support for Israel has plummeted following the killing and devastation carried out by Israeli forces in Gaza. To patch up its collapsing international image and counter the backlash, Israel is now pouring record sums of money into the effort. The country’s public-diplomacy machine, or “hasbara,” has seen its budget jump to $730 million. To sway world opinion and push Israel’s narrative, social media influencers are reportedly being paid up to $7,000 per post. But this admission by a senior official has once again exposed, for the whole world to see, the real face behind Israel’s disinformation and propaganda machine.
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