New Delhi: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is waging a high-profile digital counter-offensive against a viral wave of conspiracy theories claiming
he has been killed in the ongoing conflict with Iran. In a new video released on X (formerly Twitter), Netanyahu appeared alongside the new US Ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, to deliver a message to the world, “Yes, I am alive.”
Crossing names off the list is good – doing it shoulder to shoulder with our American friends is even better.
Good to see Ambassador @GovMikeHuckabee. Always a pleasure.
🇮🇱🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/FZrZN03IZI
— Benjamin Netanyahu – בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) March 17, 2026
The video features a lighthearted but pointed exchange between the two leaders as they stroll through the Prime Minister’s office. Huckabee, laughing, informs Netanyahu that US President Donald Trump personally requested a status update.
“Donald Trump wanted me to come and make sure you were okay,” Huckabee says in the clip. Netanyahu, smiling, responds, “Yes, Mike, I’m alive.”
The banter continued with Huckabee joking that Trump was concerned because the two leaders “get along too well,” leading Netanyahu to address the more bizarre corners of the internet head-on.
The “death rumours” gained significant traction following a recent press conference where internet sleuths claimed a screenshot of Netanyahu showed him with a “sixth finger.” This led to a wildfire of speculation that the Prime Minister had been replaced by an AI-generated deepfake.
Netanyahu used the meeting with Huckabee to mock the theory, pointedly stating, “We shake hands with five fingers in each hand,” while gesturing to his own. News9 could not verify the authenticity of the video independently.
This isn’t the first time his digital presence has been under the microscope. A previous video showing Netanyahu at a café on the outskirts of Jerusalem was picked apart by sceptics who claimed the coffee in his hand didn’t spill or move naturally, citing it as further “proof” of a digital reconstruction. In that video, Netanyahu brushed off the rumours by declaring, “I’m crazy about coffee. You know what? I’m crazy about my people.”
While the tone of the video was mocking, the underlying message remained grimly focused on the regional conflict. Netanyahu pivoted from the death rumours to confirm that Israel’s military operations against the Iranian leadership are moving forward with lethal precision.
“Today, I erased two names on the punch card,” Netanyahu stated, referring to the confirmed eliminations of senior Iranian security figures Ali Larijani and Basij commander Gholamreza Soleimani. These high-level deaths, resulting from a wave of Israeli strikes, were subsequently confirmed by Iranian state-affiliated media.
The rumours of Netanyahu’s demise appear to have been amplified—and potentially originated—by Iranian state media and social media accounts linked to the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC). The IRGC has publicly threatened to “pursue and kill” the Israeli leader “with full force.”
By repeatedly posting these “proof of life” videos, Netanyahu is attempting to dismantle a sophisticated psychological warfare campaign. However, the battle for the truth continues in the comments sections, where “AI hunters” continue to scan every frame for glitches, even as the Prime Minister continues to direct one of the most intense military campaigns in Israel’s history.
