On October 22, 2026, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu published a video conversation with Andrey Makarevich. The musician raised the issue of the division in Israeli society, and the Prime Minister responded with a promise to form a “strong right-wing government.” The publication sparked discussion on social media five days before the Knesset elections scheduled for October 27.
Makarevich and Netanyahu: video conversation about the division of Israel on October 22, 2026, and the reaction before the elections
Author: Elena Gunko, NANews
The video appeared on the Russian-language page of the Prime Minister on Facebook. The exact date of the conversation itself was not specified.
Netanyahu accompanied the publication with the following message:
“Today I spoke with Andrey Makarevich, I thanked him for his warm words of support and said what choice lies before us.”
Watch the original video conversation between Makarevich and Netanyahu on Facebook.
What Makarevich and Netanyahu talked about
The conversation began with the Prime Minister being congratulated on his birthday. Makarevich said in Hebrew: “Shalom, happy birthday.” Subsequently, Netanyahu spoke in Hebrew, and the musician responded in Russian.
One of the topics was the story with messages about Makarevich’s “Iranian captivity.”
In June 2025, a photo of the musician was circulated on social media claiming that the picture showed an Israeli military pilot captured in Iran. The message turned out to be false. Netanyahu recalled this episode and jokingly asked Makarevich about his time in captivity.
Then the participants of the conversation moved on to the socio-political situation in Israel.
Makarevich expressed concern about the division of Israeli society. In response, Netanyahu spoke about the “need for national unity and the country’s security.”
The Prime Minister promised to “destroy those who want to destroy us.” Speaking about Israel’s political future, he declared his intention to form a “strong right-wing government,” around which, according to him, “all good people can unite.”
The conversation ended with a discussion of issues related to the country’s future. The published video does not contain a direct call from Makarevich to vote for a specific party.
Why the Makarevich and Netanyahu video is being discussed before the elections
On October 27, 2026, elections to the Knesset, the country’s parliament consisting of 120 deputies, will be held in Israel. The composition of the parliament will be determined based on the voting results, after which the process of forming the government will begin.
Netanyahu heads the Likud party, representing the right-wing political camp.
In the last days before the elections, the Prime Minister participated in several television interviews.
The video conversation with Makarevich also appeared during this pre-election period. In the accompanying publication text, Netanyahu directly linked the conversation with the choice that Israelis have to make.
NANews — News of Israel | Nikk.Agency
How they reacted to the Makarevich and Netanyahu conversation
The publication received responses in the Russian-speaking segment of social networks. Among them were both messages about the content of the conversation and critical assessments of the musician’s participation in the video.
Journalist Dmitry Dubov drew attention to a map that was on the wall during the conversation. According to him, he took this map from the editorial office of the former Second Israeli Channel back in 2009.
Dubov suggested that Netanyahu combined a television interview on Channel 9 with the conversation with Makarevich. This observation does not provide reliable information about the place and exact time of the recording.
The video was also reported by SVTV publication, which accompanied the publication with a critical comment about its pre-election nature.
In one of the comments on Facebook, the author criticized Makarevich’s position, comparing his previous statements about Putin with his participation in the conversation with the Israeli Prime Minister.
Another user ironically retold the conversation about the division of society, linking Netanyahu’s response to his pre-election statements.
These are the opinions of specific commentators. They do not allow judging the attitude of the entire Russian-speaking community in Israel towards the musician or the Prime Minister.
Did Makarevich support Netanyahu in the elections?
Andrey Makarevich, leader of the band “Time Machine,” resides in Israel. After the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, he publicly opposed the war and criticized the actions of the Russian authorities.
In an interview with Deutsche Welle in January 2025, the musician talked about helping Ukrainian civilians and explained the reasons for his decision not to fund the Armed Forces of Ukraine. NANews previously published material on these statements.
Makarevich has also repeatedly spoken about the security situation in Israel. In June 2026, he reported damage to his home during an Iranian missile attack. According to the musician, his family members were not in the house at the time of the incident.
In the video published on October 22, 2026, Makarevich congratulated Netanyahu on his birthday and raised the issue of the division of Israeli society.
Netanyahu, in turn, thanked the musician for his support and outlined his position on “security, national unity, and the formation of the next government.”
However, the published messages do not contain a direct statement from Makarevich supporting the Likud party and Netanyahu personally in the elections on October 27, 2026.