Netanyahu’s coffee shop video, his ‘proof of being alive’, sparks deepfake debate too

The speculation over the whereabouts of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu intensified after several social media users claimed his new ‘coffee shop visit’ video as a deepfake.

On Sunday (March 15), Benjamin Netanyahu posted a video of himself casually chatting at The Sataf Café in Jerusalem Hills to dismiss viral rumours about his death. However, the clip quickly drew scrutiny online with viewers closely examining it to check for the presence of “six fingers.”

The controversy comes days after another video circulated on social media apparently showing the Israeli Prime Minister with six fingers, amid heightened tensions following the Iran–Israel conflict.

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Sharing from his official handle, Netanyahu was seen sipping coffee while making a sarcastic pun in Hebrew "I am dead... for coffee". Disproving the earlier video that showed him with six fingers, he purposefully held up both hands to the camera, inviting viewers to "count the number of fingers".

Video under scrutiny

The video comes after several Iranian media outlets alleged that Netanyahu was "no longer alive" following retaliatory strikes, suggesting Israel was using AI to "puppet" him in public videos.

Despite being shared from the official handle, several social media users asked X’s AI chatbot Grok on the authenticity of the video. "It's AI-generated. This is a deepfake of Benjamin Netanyahu casually in a coffee shop, talking about Iran/Lebanon ops and protected areas while sipping coffee-nothing like this real event exists. The original post explicitly calls it advanced unreleased AI," the chatbot claimed.

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"Magical pocket... Coffee in the cup defying gravity... Customer with a mask behind the counter. Nice Try.....NOTenyahu," wrote a user while sharing close-up shots of the video.

Many X users were seen tagging Grok to confirm the authenticity of the video released on the Israeli Prime Minister and The Sataf Café handles.

Grok confirms as AI

Several social media users also raised what they described as “serious questions” about the authenticity of the video, calling it a blatantly obvious AI-generated clip.

One user on X claimed the shape of Benjamin Netanyahu’s face appeared to change during the footage — from round to more oval after he looked down at his coffee — suggesting possible digital manipulation.

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The AI chatbot Grok also echoed the suspicion when responding to a query, stating it was “100 per cent sure” the video was an advanced deepfake, arguing that a scenario in which Netanyahu casually discusses sensitive Iran-Lebanon operations in a public café had never been reported and appeared fictional.

‘He’s doing fine’

Even as the speculation rises on the whereabouts of Netanyahu after he was absent from a high-level security cabinet briefing and a military council meeting held on March 14 and 15, the Israeli PM office maintained that he is doing fine and his engagement in the military discussion is the reason for his absence.

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Rumours were further fuelled by the silence of Yair Netanyahu, son of Benjamin Netanyahu, who had not posted on X since March 9, a notable break from his usually frequent daily posts.