TEL AVIV — Gadi Eisenkot, head of the Yashar party, filed a petition with the Central Elections Committee against Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich on Friday, June 26, 2026. The petition demanded that Smotrich remove an AI-generated video that claimed Eisenkot would advocate for the establishment of a Palestinian state. It accused Smotrich of attempting to "spread hatred, lies, and mislead voters" and stated that "there is no place for lying, deception, and manipulation in the current election system." The Yashar Party described the video as a "manipulative attempt by the Religious Zionist Party to deliberately deceive the electorate."

Smotrich, who also leads the Religious Zionist Party, posted the AI-generated video to X/Twitter on Tuesday, June 23, 2026. The video depicts Eisenkot shaking hands and posing with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and Ra'am party leader MK Mansour Abbas. It also shows an Israeli flag being replaced with a Palestinian flag, and text in the video reads, "an Eisenkot government means the creation of a Palestinian state." The Yashar Party requested that the chairman of the General Elections Committee establish a "clear boundary," stating that "an election campaign cannot become an arena where lies, manipulations, and fake AI content replace facts." The party also issued a statement asserting that Smotrich, "instead of dealing with reality and his failures," chose to "spread propaganda based on artificial images."

Smotrich responded to the petition in a post on X/Twitter on Friday, June 26, 2026. He stated, "no petition will succeed in hiding the truth." Smotrich added, "Your government, with Yair Golan and Mansour Abbas, will establish a Palestinian state."