Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu convened a press conference this afternoon to respond to a report by the Yediot Ahronot newspaper that the Likud is operating a bots network to promote the party on social networks.
"Today, Lapid and Gantz's home newspaper invented the Bots Plot. At first I thought it was for April Fool's Day, but it's another false plot mobilized by the media to distribute together with them, made by a left-wing organization. They claimed support for the Likud isn't people but bots, robots. They aren't willing to accept that Israeli citizens support the Likud and me," Netanyahu said.
He added, "A million Likud voters aren't bots. For four years the media's been lying to you from morning to evening; they silence and slander right-wingers, they called us a riffraff, kissers of amulets, and now they call us bots. They had power. You have the opportunity to show what you think about them and our tremendous achievements.
"None of them is fake; they're all real people, all of them have families and opinions," Netanyahu said.
"What's Lapid going to talk about? His failed period as Finance Minister? What's he talking about? So they try to divert attention - the first way - diversion, is pretty easy, because the media is almost entirely mobilized for them. Almost all the time, the media conceals our tremendous achievements as much as possible," the Prime Minister said.