TNA Staff
The New Arab / September 27, 2025
Speaking to pro-Israeli influencers, Netanyahu said that social media was Israel’s new ‘weapon’ after a US consortium acquired TikTok’s American operations.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that his government views social media platforms as a “weapon” to bolster Israel’s faltering image in the United States, amid growing international outrage over the genocide in the Gaza Strip.
During a meeting with pro-Israeli American social media influencers at the Israeli Consulate General in New York on Friday, Netanyahu said, “We have to fight with weapons that apply to the battlefields in which we’re engaged in and the most important ones are on social media,” according to a video of the meeting posted by influencer Debra Lea on her X account.
He said that a deal which would see US companies, most of them owned by pro-Israel businessmen, acquire TikTok’s operations in the United States, was “the most important purchase going on right now.”
TikTok, a Chinese-owned platform, has previously been heavily criticised by pro-Israel members of the US Congress because of the presence of videos showing the situation in Gaza and other pro-Palestinian content, which are believed to have heavily influenced the opinions of young Americans.
Netanyahu also mentioned the social media platform X, also known as Twitter saying, “We have to talk to Elon [Musk]. He’s not an enemy, but a friend.”
Since Musk’s acquisition of the platform, X has increasingly been seen as a conduit for right-wing and anti-immigrant disinformation.
The Israeli prime minister, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes in Gaza, said that if influence over TikTok and X could be secured, Israel “would get a lot”.
His remarks coincided with US President Donald Trump signing an executive order on Thursday approving a deal to transfer TikTok’s US operations to a consortium of American companies, saying it meets national security requirements under domestic law.
Trump said the investor group would include Oracle, Michael Dell, and Rupert Murdoch.
Murdoch and his son Lachlan own the vehemently pro-Israel Fox News network and New York Post tabloid newspaper in the United States.
Michael Dell, head of Dell Technologies, has been a strong supporter of Israel, and is believed to have provided the Israeli military with technology and data that enhanced its capabilities in its wars on Gaza and Lebanon, either directly through his company or through Israeli startups acquired by Dell.
Oracle is known for its closeness to Trump and has also cooperated with the Israeli government on technology and military infrastructure, with CEO Larry Ellison having previously invited Netanyahu to vacation on his private Hawaiian island.
Netanyahu’s comments about social media come as Israel faces growing international isolation over its genocidal war in Gaza, which has killed more than 65,000 Palestinians – most of them women and children, according to the Gaza health ministry.
The true death toll is believed to be much higher.
Netanyahu spoke to a nearly empty hall at the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly, after many delegations walked out in protest at his presence.
