A video shared on Facebook claims to show Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reacting to a recent attack in Lebanon involving pagers.
Verdict: False
The video was originally shared on Netanyahu’s verified TikTok account in March 2021, making it predate the recent pager attack in Lebanon.
Fact Check:
Another 20 people were killed and 450 were injured following a second wireless device attack in Lebanon, according to ABC News. Ten members of Hezbollah were killed during the attack, the outlet reported.
The Facebook video claims to show Netanyahu reacting to a recent attack in Lebanon involving pagers. In the video, Netanyahu can be seen sitting inside a car and whistling a tune to himself.
“11 people were killed [sic] 4000 were injured, 400 out of them are serious injuries in the Israeli cyber attack on Lebanese citizens, and Netanyahu appeared in a video whistling and celebrating this [sic] terroristic attacks. Such a coldblooded war criminal,” the video’s caption reads.
The claim is false. The video was originally posted to Netanyahu’s verified TikTok account in March 2021, making it predate the recent pager attack in Lebanon. “Do you recognize the song?” a translation of the video’s caption reads.
@bnetanyahuמזהים את השיר?♬ original sound – Benjamin Netanyahu – נתניהו
Likewise, Check Your Fact did not find the video referenced in any recent credible news reports about the pager attack in Lebanon. Actually, the opposite is true. On September 19, India Today reported the claim was false. The outlet also traced the video back to Netanyahu’s verified TikTok account and indicated he was “whistling the anthem of his party, Likud,” citing the Israeli news outlet Kikar. (RELATED: Did A Small Nuclear Strike Hit Russia?)
In addition, Netanyahu does not appear to have publicly commented on the claim via his website or his verified social media accounts.
According to The Associated Press, thousands of handheld pagers recently blew up in Lebanon. Israel is believed to have prompted the incident which targeted devices belonging to Hezbollah, the outlet reported.
Check Your Fact has contacted Netanyahu for her comment.