Video doesn't show attack on Netanyahu. Here's what it actually captures

An authentic video circulated with false claims that the Israeli prime minister was seriously injured and would be flown to the U.S. Published Oct. 30, 2026 Claim: A video circulating online in October shows an attack on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv that left him severely injured. In late October, a video spread on social media with claims it showed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu being attacked and seriously injured in Tel Aviv. "Breaking 🚨 A very dangerous attack on Netanyahu in Tel Aviv it appears he has sustained severe injuries, and an aircraft is being dispatched to transport him to the United States. This is clearly evident from the footage," one X post (archived) captioned the footage. Other X users also shared the video. Snopes readers searched our website for information about the alleged attack. The video is authentic, meaning not generated with artificial intelligence or digitally edited. However, it does not show Netanyahu. It shows an attempted attack on Bulgarian politician Ahmed Dogan during a party conference in January 2013. We have therefore rated the claim miscaptioned. We found no credible reports of such an attack on Netanyahu. He remained politically active following Israel's Oct. 27 election and delivered a speech in Jerusalem the following day. What we know about the video On Jan. 19, 2013, Dogan, then the leader of Bulgaria's Movement for Rights and Freedoms party, was giving a speech in Sofia when a man came onto the stage and pointed a gas pistol at his head. The gun did not fire, and Dogan was not injured. Security guards and other people at the conference then stopped the attacker, according to reporting by the BBC and bTV, a Bulgarian broadcaster. The Guardian also shared footage of the incident. Although a thumbnail attached to the circulating video appeared to show Netanyahu (see screenshot below), the footage of the attack itself didn't. (X user @AsifAli_Haider) The video's low quality also made it difficult to identify the person in the footage, which may have made the claim more believable to social media users. This was not the first time social media users falsely linked the video to Netanyahu. In 2024, Reuters, AFP and Soch Fact Check debunked posts claiming the footage showed Netanyahu being attacked by members of Israel's parliament. Similar claims were debunked again in April 2026. When the video resurfaced in October, fact-checking outlet Lead Stories also investigated it. Sources AFP. "Clip Shows Attack on Bulgarian Politician, Not 'Assault on Netanyahu After ICC Arrest Warrant Issued.'" Fact Check, 6 Dec. 2024, factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com.36PC4EV. Accessed 30 Oct. 2026."Ahmed Dogan Attacked by Armed Assailant in Bulgaria." BBC News, 19 Jan. 2013, www.bbc.com/news/world-21103987. Accessed 30 Oct. 2026.Anadolu Agency. "Israel's Netanyahu Claims Mandate for Right-Wing Government as Exit Polls Leave His Bloc Short of Majority." Reuters Connect, www.reutersconnect.com/item/israels-netanyahu-claims-mandate-for-right-wing-government-as-exit-polls-leave-his-bloc-short-of-majority/dGFnOnJldXRlcnMuY29tLDIwMjY6bmV3c21sX09XQU5BQ0FBVklERU8yMDI2MTAyODQyODg1Mzc2. Accessed 30 Oct. 2026."Bulgarian Politician Avoids Gun Assassination Attempt Live on TV - Video." The Guardian, The Guardian, 21 Jan. 2013, www.theguardian.com/world/video/2013/jan/21/bulgarian-politician-gun-live-tv-video. Accessed 30 Oct. 2026."Israel Election: Exit Polls Suggest No Clear Winner With Eisenkot's Bloc Neck and Neck With Netanyahu." BBC News, 27 Oct. 2026, www.bbc.com/news/live/cqpvgnlm9944t. Accessed 30 Oct. 2026.Manoj, Usha. "2013 Video of Attack on Bulgarian Politician Falsely Shared as Attack on Benjamin Netanyahu in the Israeli Parliament." Fact Crescendo, 13 Apr. 2026, english.factcrescendo.com/2026/04/13/2013-video-of-attack-on-bulgarian-politician-falsely-shared-as-attack-on-benjamin-netanyahu-in-the-israeli-parliament/. Accessed 30 Oct. 2026.Reuters Staff. "Fact Check: Video Does Not Show Attack on Benjamin Netanyahu in Parliament." Reuters, 13 Dec. 2024, www.reuters.com/fact-check/video-does-not-show-attack-benjamin-netanyahu-parliament-2024-12-13/. Accessed 30 Oct. 2026.Uliana Malashenko. "Fact Check: Video Does NOT Show Attack on Netanyahu in October 2026 -- Footage of Unrelated Incident in Bulgaria." Leadstoriescom, Lead Stories LLC, 28 Oct. 2026, leadstories.com/hoax-alert/2026/10/fact-check-video-does-not-show-attack-on-netanyahu-in-october-2026-footage-of-unrelated-incident-in-bulgaria.html. Accessed 30 Oct. 2026.Zaman, Haseem uz. "Does This Video Show Netanyahu Being Attacked by Israeli MPs?" Soch Fact Check, 31 Dec. 2024, www.sochfactcheck.com/does-this-video-show-benjamin-netanyahu-being-attacked-by-israeli-mps-parliament/. Accessed 30 Oct. 2026. By Aleksandra Wrona Aleksandra Wrona is a reporting fellow for Snopes, based in the Warsaw, Poland, area. Article Tags