Al Jazeera probe exposes fake viewing numbers for Israeli counter-film

Key Points:

• An Al Jazeera investigation revealed that claims of over 44 million views for an Israeli counter-film to the documentary NAZA were fabricated, with independent traffic tools showing actual views were vastly lower.
• The original film NAZA, featuring testimony from Israeli military whistleblowers about AI-powered targeting causing civilian deaths in Gaza, won critical acclaim and sparked a political backlash in Israel, including demands for investigations and threats against its directors.
• The counter-film, promoted by official Israeli entities and linked to domains disguising as NAZA’s official site, displayed inflated view counts on its website that were up to 336 times higher than verified YouTube views.
• Technical analysis showed the website’s view counter was artificially generated and misleading, while actual user engagement data was collected but not publicly disclosed.
• Despite the fabricated metrics, Israeli government officials actively promoted the counter-film, using the inflated numbers as a key talking point amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza, where tens of thousands of Palestinians have been killed since October 2023.