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'Don't let them win': Likud billboard highlights Mamdani, Khamenei, Erdogan, Qassem as enemies

From Jerusalem Post · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Sources not specified New plan
  • Israel's Likud party launched a billboard ahead of elections featuring images of Iran's Ayatollah Khamenei, NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Turkey's Erdogan, and Hezbollah's Naim Qassem, with the slogan "They want Netanyahu to lose; don’t let them win."
  • The billboard, reportedly displayed in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv, sparked immediate responses from rival Israeli politicians who created their own versions to criticize Netanyahu.
  • Opposition parties used the Likud ad to highlight different perceived threats, with one version focusing on the collapse of the IDF and another referencing the 'Qatargate' affair involving Netanyahu's aides.

Israel's Likud party has ignited pre-election debate with a provocative billboard featuring prominent international figures and the stark message: "They want Netanyahu to lose; don’t let them win." The advertisement superimposes images of Iran's Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem.

They want Netanyahu to lose; don’t let them win.

— Likud billboardThe slogan featured on the Likud party's election billboard.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu himself amplified the message by reposting a picture of the billboard on social media. While some reports place the billboard in Jerusalem, The Jerusalem Post suggests it is located in Tel Aviv, overlooking the Ayalon Highway. The Likud campaign appears to frame these figures as external enemies actively seeking Netanyahu's electoral defeat.

The Likud's tactic immediately drew sharp criticism and counter-campaigns from opposition parties. Gadi Eisenkot, leader of the Yashar party, responded with a modified billboard featuring the slogan, "They want the IDF to collapse, don’t let Netanyahu win." Yashar's post asserted, "Netanyahu, we fixed for you. Only Eisenkot will establish a fully Zionist government."

Don’t let them win.

— Benjamin NetanyahuPrime Minister Netanyahu's caption when reposting a picture of the Likud billboard.

MK Naama Lazimi of the Labor party also shared a version of the billboard, replacing the original figures with images of Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, Netanyahu's strategic adviser Yonatan Urich, and former Netanyahu media and political advisers Eli Feldstein and Srulik Einhorn. Lazimi linked this to the 'Qatargate' affair, an investigation into alleged involvement of Netanyahu's aides in a scandal involving payments from Qatar during hostage negotiations with Hamas. Her caption read, "Netanyahu, I updated this to the Qatargate version. The invoice will be submitted on October 7."

They want the IDF to collapse, don’t let Netanyahu win.

— Yashar party billboardThe modified slogan used by Gadi Eisenkot's party in response to the Likud ad.

Recent polls indicate a tight race, with Eisenkot's Yashar party leading with 24 Knesset seats, followed by Netanyahu's Likud with 22, and Naftali Bennett's B'Yachad with 15. The Likud billboard and the subsequent responses highlight the intense political maneuvering and the framing of external and internal issues as central to the upcoming election campaign.

Netanyahu, we fixed for you. Only Eisenkot will establish a fully Zionist government.

— Yashar partyCaption accompanying their version of the billboard on X/Twitter.
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Originally published by Jerusalem Post. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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