Google's $45 million contract with Netanyahu's office to spread Israeli propaganda

In June 2025, Netanyahu’s office secured a $45 million contract with Google and YouTube for a six-month ad campaign explicitly termed "Hasbara." Managed through YouTube and Google’s Display & Video 360, the campaign denies famine in Gaza, contradicting UN reports confirming 367 deaths, including 131 children, from hunger since the war began.

On March 2, 2025, Israel’s blockade halted all humanitarian aid to Gaza. Knesset member Moshe Tur-Paz questioned Netanyahu’s public relations strategy. IDF spokesperson Avichai Edrei responded, “We could also decide to launch a digital campaign in this context, to explain that there is no hunger and present the data.”

A YouTube video by Israel’s foreign ministry, viewed over 6 million times, claims, “There is food in Gaza. Any other claim is a lie.” This aligns with the $45 million campaign. Israel also contracted X for $3 million and Outbrain/Teads for $2.1 million to amplify similar messaging.

The UN declared a Gaza famine in August 2025, warning of a “massive famine” in Deir al-Balah and Khan Younis. Despite this, Israeli ads on Google’s platforms accuse the UN of “deliberate sabotage” and promote the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, backed by Israel and the U.S.

Bezalel Smotrich, Israel’s Finance Minister, endorsed starving Gazans, stating on Channel 12, “No water, no electricity, they can die of hunger or surrender.” Knesset member Amichay Eliyahu added on radio, “There is no nation that feeds its enemies.” Eliyahu also said, “If there are civilians who fear for their lives, they should go through the emigration plan.”

Israel’s campaign targets the Hind Rajab Foundation, labeling it as tied to “extremist ideologies” in government reports. The ads followed Operation Rising Lion, killing 436 Iranian civilians, per Human Rights Activists in Iran.