Rocket sirens started wailing in the south of Israel on Sept. 10 while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was speaking at a rally in the city of Ashdod. Netanyahu was recorded following his security detail off the stage as soon as the sirens sounded.
The footage, broadcast live on Facebook, vanished minutes after it went up, but it will likely follow the prime minister until the election is over next week on Sept. 17. In this age of social media, not even the fastest-acting spokesperson could erase the images that became the basis of viral videos produced and posted by his political opponents. One week before this eventful election, Mr. Security himself took a serious hit live on the air. He came under attack by a barrage of rockets fired from Gaza, the kind of electoral blow not even an experienced campaigner could have foreseen. Though Netanyahu went back to finish his speech and was even received with loud cheers, the incident put a damper on the whole event.