'Baseless': Beijing Rebukes Netanyahu’s Claim Of 'Information Blockade' Through AI By China

Last Updated:September 18, 2025, 09:54 IST

China has rejected Benjamin Netanyahu’s remarks accusing Beijing of aiding an information blockade against Israel, calling them baseless and harmful to bilateral ties.

File photos of Xi Jinping/Benjamin Netanyahu (AP)

Beijing has raised concerns about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s remarks against China, wherein he named the country among those allegedly investing in artificial intelligence and using social media to carry out an “information blockade" against Israel.

According to Global Times, a spokesperson from the Chinese Embassy in Israel has opposed Netanyahu’s China-related remarks, and called such claims “completely baseless, harmful to China-Israel relations".

“China is shocked by the remarks made by the Israeli leader. Such claims are completely baseless, harmful to China-Israel relations, and China is seriously concerned and firmly opposes them," the report quoted the spokesperson as saying.

Blaming critical voices on a few social media platforms and then pointing the finger at China is nothing but a case of “seeking the wrong cure for the illness."

It targets the wrong party and prescribes the wrong remedy, the spokesperson was quoted as saying.

“We have also noted that within Israel itself there are many voices of reflection, arguing that what the country needs is not a prolonged war, but a lasting plan for peace", said the spokesperson, adding that to overcome its current predicament, Israel needs political wisdom and creative diplomacy, not simply military operations and endless bombardment.

The spokesperson also urged Israel to heed the strong call of the international community, immediately halt its military operations in Gaza, and achieve a comprehensive and lasting ceasefire as soon as possible to prevent an even greater humanitarian catastrophe, the report mentioned.

NETANYAHU’s REMARK AGAINST CHINA

On September 15, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed that Israel is facing increasing isolation on the world stage and will have to become a more self-reliant “super-Sparta" in the years to come.

“Israel is in a sort of isolation," Netanyahu said at a conference of the Finance Ministry’s accountant general in Jerusalem.

Israel is facing two new threats since the start of the war, Netanyahu explained, demographic changes in Europe as a result of immigration from Muslim-majority countries and the influence of anti-Israel actors on digital platforms, aided by new technologies.

According to Netanyahu, the challenge is the investment of Israel’s “rivals, both NGOs and states, like Qatar and China", to “influence Western media with an anti-Israel agenda, using bots, artificial intelligence, and advertisements."

“This puts us in a sort of isolation," he said, adding that Israel can fight demonisation and incitement if it invests “very large sums" into efforts to counter those narratives.

But for now, he said, Israel must quickly establish the capacity to produce everything it needs militarily without depending on foreign trade.

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Vani Mehrotra

Vani Mehrotra is the Deputy News Editor at News18.com. She has nearly 10 years of experience in both national and international news and has previously worked on multiple desks.

Vani Mehrotra is the Deputy News Editor at News18.com. She has nearly 10 years of experience in both national and international news and has previously worked on multiple desks.

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