Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released another video message on Monday (March 16), hours after a clip posted from a coffee shop was flagged as a possible deepfake by AI chatbot Grok.
The latest video shows Netanyahu speaking to people against a backdrop of greenery and mountains. It comes shortly after an earlier clip shared on his X account sparked intense scrutiny on social media.
Netanyahu wrote on the post in Hebrew: “Stick to the instructions and win together.
Cafe clip sparks deeply fake debate
The an earlier video that showed Netanyahu in a coffee shop joking about rumors of his deathquickly became the subject of debate after Grok suggested that the footage could be generated by AI.
The chatbot described the clip as a “satirical” video and flagged several visual inconsistencies that it said were consistent with deepfakes.
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According to Grok’s analysis, the level of coffee in Netanyahu’s cup appeared static throughout the clip, while the lip movements naturally did not match the sound, raising doubts about the recording’s authenticity.
Grok signals signs of a possible AI generation
Grok responded to user X about the authenticity of the video:
“No, it’s not real. This is an AI-generated deepfake video. Netanyahu’s official account posted it as satire/humor (description: ‘They say I’m what?’) likely to quell recent rumors of a death in the middle of the Iran conflict. Signs like the static level of the coffee, the unnatural lip-syncing, and casual ops talk confirm this.”
The claim quickly sparked an online debate over whether the video was intended as satire or was actually created using artificial intelligence.
Rumors of the death are spreading online
The clip from the cafe was released in response to rumors circulating on social media that Netanyahu had been killed in an Iranian strike.
In the video, the Israeli leader scoffed at the speculation while sipping coffee in a cafe, saying: “They say I’m what?”
The rumors have spread widely online amid conspiracy theories suggesting that Netanyahu’s recent TV appearance was created using artificial intelligence.
A new threat from Iran
Meanwhile, tensions escalated after Iran’s state-run Islamic Republic News Agency reported that The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps issued a new threat against the Israeli prime minister.
In a post on X, the agency wrote: “IRGC vows to hunt down and kill ‘child killer’ Netanyahu if still alive.
The threat came as the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran continues to fuel intense rhetoric and misinformation online.
Netanyahu responds with a new video
Amid swirling speculation, Netanyahu has released a new video message that has surfaced that appears to be aimed at reinforcing that he is alive.
The clip emerged as debate continued online over whether the earlier video from the cafe was satire, a deepfake or part of a wider attempt to counter viral gossip about the death.
