Benny Gantz
Benny GantzElad Malka

The Chairman of the Central Elections Commission, Judge Yitzhak Amit, on Wednesday ordered Defense Minister Benny Gantz to remove from all his private social media accounts photos in which he appears alongside IDF soldiers during Operation Breaking Dawn.

In doing so, the judge accepted a petition from the Likud Party that demanded the removal of these photos from the official accounts of the Prime Minister's Office and the Ministry of Defense.

The ruling states that "the postings on the private accounts are not intended to transmit news and official messages, but also political messages."

The judge ruled that the publication of the photos with the soldiers on Gantz's private accounts had no justification, since they had already appeared on the official accounts and served the informative and deterrent purpose for which they were intended.

He also imposed a fine of 10,000 shekels on the two components of the National Unity Party - Israel Resilience and New Hope.