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Hananya Naftali
Israeli journalist (born 1995) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Hananya Naftali[a] (Hebrew: חנניה נפתלי; born 7 July 1995) is an Israeli journalist and influencer. He serves as a digital aide to the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.[4]
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Early life
Naftali was born in Tzfat in 1995 and grew up in Samaria in the West Bank. He graduated from Kadoorie Agricultural High School.[5][6]
Acts of journalism
In 2017, after gaining around 200,000 followers on Facebook, Naftali was able to interview the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.[7] A few months later, he began to serve as Netanyahu's deputy social media adviser.[7] He also worked as a freelancer for the Likud party.[5][8]
Military
Hananaya announced on X that he was drafted into the army to fight against Hamas in Gaza war.[2]
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,[9] after the Israeli government claimed a misfired Palestinian rocket was responsible for the explosion.[10] 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.[8]
Personal life
Hananya Naftali was born to Jewish parents originally from the former Soviet Union. His parents grew up in Russia and were later relocated from Russia to Budapest, Hungary, and eventually to Tel Aviv, Israel, with assistance from the Jewish Agency for Israel as refugees.
Naftali has mentioned that he can speak basic Russian. He has on several occasions spoken at events organized by the Norwegian right wing micro party Conservative.[11] which has been criticized for being pro-Kremlin and for promoting Russian propaganda.[12]
He identifies as a follower of Jesus and aligns with Messianic Judaism, a movement that combines Jewish tradition with belief in Jesus as the Messiah. In an interview, he stated: "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."[7][13][14][15] He has been accused of having proselytized during his army service, which he denies.[5][13][8]
Naftali is married to India Naftali, an Israeli journalist of Iranian descent.[16]
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Notes
- Hebrew: חנניה נפתלי
References
External links
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