Is Benjamin Netanyahu alive or not? This question is prevalent on social media. Meanwhile, a picture from the Israeli PM office has further increased the confusion. Even AI chatbot Grok was puzzled by this photo as to when it was taken.
Israel-Iran War Latest News: For the past few days, various rumors have been circulating on social media regarding the well-being of Benjamin Netanyahu. Now a new picture released from the Israeli Prime Minister’s office has further increased this confusion. In this picture, Netanyahu is seen directing a military operation against Iranian officials over a secure phone line. As soon as the photo came online, there was a storm of fact-checking, as AI chatbot Grok gave different answers about when the photo was taken.
This confusion has arisen amid increasing tension between Israel and Iran. Israel has claimed that it has killed Iran’s top leaders Ali Larijani and Gholamreza Soleimani in its strikes.
Also read: Who is Ali Larijani whom Israel claimed to have killed? Why is he considered the most powerful person after Khamenei?
Netanyahu seen in the picture ordering the elimination
According to the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office, in the picture Netanyahu is talking to military officers on a secure landline and ordering attacks against senior officials of the Iranian regime. The caption accompanying this photo read: “Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordering the elimination of senior officials of the Iranian regime.”
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Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said that Larijani and Soleimani were killed in these operations. Katz said in a televised address that he had been told by Israel’s military chief that the two leaders were “eliminated last night.” He added that they have “joined all the murdered people of the axis of evil in the depths of hell, along with Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, the head of the destruction program.”
If Tehran confirms it, Larijani’s death would be the most high-profile killing since the assassination of Ali Khamenei since the war began with US-Israel strikes on February 28.
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Grok first described the picture as ‘new’
This picture quickly went viral and users took the help of Grok, the AI chatbot of X (Twitter) to know its truth. In his first reply, Grok claimed that the photo is recent.
“This photo was released today (March 17, 2026) by the official IsraeliPM account to show the ongoing Israeli operation against Iranian targets,” Grok said.
Grok added, “It shows Netanyahu in his office with the IDF and staff on a secure landline, probably taken in the last 24-48 hours amid the ongoing conflict. No older sources match this exact photo.”
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Social media users surrounded Grok
However, the story changed when social media users shared screenshots showing the same image had previously appeared online with the date February 4, 2026 – weeks before the war began.
After seeing the screenshot, Grok changed his answer.
The chatbot said, “Yes, the photo of Netanyahu on the phone with the IDF officer and the note-taker are identical. The screenshot you shared shows this photo to be from February 4, 2026 (which is before the February 28 attacks), so the photo posted by IsraeliPM today is an old photo that has been reused for the caption.”
The incident became another example of how rapidly changing information in times of war – coupled with AI verification tools – can create confusion rather than clarity.
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Rumors of Netanyahu’s death
This controversy over the photo has come at a time when Netanyahu himself has had to deny rumors of his death. Last week, the Israeli leader posted a short video from a cafe to mock the viral claims circulating on social media. “I’m dying for coffee,” Netanyahu said jokingly, using a Hebrew idiom. It means that they like something very much. Then he raised his hand to the camera and joked: “Do you want to count my fingers?” The comment was a dig at online conspiracy theories that claimed her previous video was made by AI because it allegedly showed six fingers.
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“Stick to the guidelines and win together,” Netanyahu said in another video.
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Israel confirmed- PM is alive
Israeli officials have repeatedly rejected these rumors. Israeli Ambassador to India Reuven Azar said he had seen the Prime Minister in person. “Prime Minister Netanyahu is alive. I saw him myself more than once when I was in Israel. This cafe video was not made by AI. A lot of misinformation is being spread,” Azar said. Netanyahu’s office also rejected claims of his assassination, saying in a direct response to a question: “This is fake news; the prime minister is fine.”
Also read: After all, what is the compulsion? Iran has fired 1600 drones, 300 missiles, yet why is UAE avoiding counterattack?
War with Iran intensifies
This speculation regarding Netanyahu’s status is taking place against the backdrop of escalating war between Israel and Iran. Israel says it killed Basij commander Soleimani “in a precision strike in Tehran”. The Basij – a volunteer paramilitary force under Iran’s Revolutionary Guards – has played a key role in suppressing protests against the cleric’s rule. According to the Israeli military, Soleimani was killed along with other commanders in an airstrike on a “temporary headquarters”. Meanwhile, air raid sirens began sounding in northern Israel shortly after the announcement, and AFP journalists reported hearing distant explosions following warnings of incoming Iranian missiles.
AI, warfare and the information field
The debate around Netanyahu’s photo highlights that the Israel-Iran conflict is being fought not just on the battlefield, but also in the digital information sphere. Amidst AI-generated rumours, old images and real-time propaganda, even verification tools like Grok are struggling to keep up – leaving the internet asking the same question over and over again – is Benjamin Netanyahu alive or not?