The move also drew swift criticism from Attorney General Baharav-Miara, who warned it could amount to an unlawful effort to undermine public broadcasting and freedom of expression.
A petition will also be filed to Israel's Central Elections Committee over the forged picture, Bennett's party said.
If the state budget is not approved in all three readings by the end of March, when the fiscal year closes, the Knesset will automatically dissolve, and elections will be called.
The Israel National Cyber Directorate (INCD) has to protect the country from the third most cyber attacks in the world
The letter comes amid shifting dynamics within Israel’s opposition bloc as parties aim to gain enough seats to beat Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the next elections.
This is the second time Ernst and Netanyahu have met in the last year, with them previously meeting in August 2025, when the war with Hamas was still ongoing in Gaza.
POLITICAL AFFAIRS: Two significant political developments played out this week as Israel moves towards elections. Gadi Eisenkot and Yonatan Shamriz took the reflectors with key announcements.
The opposition had been standing at 60 seats, at the cusp of a majority, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition remained at 50 seats. The Arab parties, meanwhile, stand at 10 seats.
The bloc, once made up of the four Arab parties, began to break apart ahead of the 2021 elections after Ra’am left the alliance.
Eisenkot has proposed creating a unified list for the upcoming elections with former prime minister Naftali Bennett and Opposition leader Yair Lapid.
Case 4000 centers on allegations that Netanyahu, while serving as prime minister and communications minister, advanced regulatory benefits worth hundreds of millions of shekels to Bezeq.
