It lasted all of 24 seconds. That was the entire length of the video that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu posted to social media at 9:00 p.m. on Jan. 24. The tightly edited video featured remarks by two leaders of the demonstrations outside the attorney general’s house: Manny Naftali, the former superintendent of the prime minister’s residence, and social activist Eldad Yaniv. These two men are most closely identified with a series of demonstrations that took place there every Saturday night during many weeks, in an effort to pressure Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit to indict the prime minister. “Mandelblit, we haven’t forgotten you! We’re coming to your home,” Naftali promises. The video clip is accompanied by the header, “The left is applying pressure to the attorney general. Will that pressure work?”
Netanyahu’s election videos are very brief, rhythmic and provocative. The thing is that they do not target some political rival; they are focused on Mandelblit, who, according to all observers, is expected to announce his decision to indict Netanyahu for bribery (subject to a hearing) in Case 4000 (a telecom-media affair), and that he will do this some time in February, just before the April 9 election.