Hananya Naftali (Hebrew: חנניה נפתלי; born 7 July 1995) is an Israeli journalist and YouTuber and military personnel.[4][5][6] He serves as a digital aide to the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.[7]
In 2017, after gaining around 200,000 followers on Facebook, Naftali was able to interview the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.[10] A few months later, he began to serve as Netanyahu's deputy social media adviser.[10] He also worked as a freelancer for the Likud party.[8][11]
On 17 October 2023, in response to the Al-Ahli Arab Hospital explosion, he posted a tweet: "Israeli Air Force struck a Hamas terrorist base inside a hospital in Gaza." He later deleted this tweet,[12] after the Israeli government claimed a misfired Palestinian rocket was responsible for the explosion.[13] There was controversy when it wasn't clear whether Naftali was actually authorised to speak on behalf of the Israeli government, or was in fact employed by the Likud party.[11].
Personal life
Naftali was born to Jewish parents born in the Soviet Union. While he considers himself a follower of Jesus, he identifies with Messianic Judaism. He said: "I am Jewish, but I follow the teachings of the New Testament as well. It is not my job to tell people what they should believe in...".[14][10][15][16][17] He has been accused of having proselytized during his army service, which he denies.[8][15][11]
Naftali is married to India Naftali, an Israeli journalist.[18]