Israeli Prime Minister used a video filmed in a coffee shop in Israel on Sunday to mock online rumours that he had been assassinated by Iran, delivering a pointed response as the claims spread across social media and into state-backed rhetoric. In the clip, Benjamin Netanyahu appeared relaxed, bought a drink and looked straight into the camera, asking, 'They say I'm what?'
The rumours had been building since late last week, when online users claimed a recent video of Netanyahu showed six fingers on one hand and must therefore have been generated by artificial intelligence. That flimsy theory quickly hardened into something more sinister, with posts claiming he had been killed, even as Iranian state media carried a headline saying the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps would pursue and kill him 'if he is still alive'.
