The budget will be used for campaigns to raise awareness and promote Israel worldwide, with NIS 1 billion already authorized by the government.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich agreed with Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar on a budget of NIS 2.35 billion (Almost $750 million) for hasbara (public diplomacy) campaigns, as part of the new budget of 2026 presented on Friday.
The budget will be used for campaigns to raise awareness and promote Israel worldwide, with NIS 1 billion already authorized by the government.
“Alongside the budget increase, the government approved my proposal to establish a public diplomacy unit in the Foreign Affairs Ministry. Accordingly, a head of the public diplomacy unit will be appointed in the ministry, just as there is a head of the political unit. The unit will coordinate the ministry’s work on the issue of publicizing,” Sa’ar said.
The budget will also be used, among other things, to fund social media campaigns, collaborate with civil society organizations, and bring delegations of opinion leaders, elected officials, influencers, and others to Israel, the government said in a statement.
“Our enemies are investing huge sums against us in this. Israel has acted with very modest means and must now both increase resources and adopt new and up-to-date methods. The amounts approved are still modest in relation to the challenges that Israel faces in the world, but this is a significant breakthrough,” Sa’ar added.
Now the budget, which was already criticized by opposition figures like Yair Lapid (Yesh Atid), will need to be approved in the Knesset before becoming official.
NIS 112 billion in defence for 2026
One of the main points of the 2026 budget is a rise in defence spending, agreed between Smotrich and Defence Minister Israel Katz following negotiations. According to the draft, it will finally be NIS 112 billion ($35 billion) for 2026.
The Israel-Hamas War has been costly for Israel, which spent NIS 100 billion in 2024 on its conflicts with Hamas and with Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Israel has since entered ceasefire deals with both terrorist groups.
Smotrich’s office said that the 2026 defense budget has increased by 47 billion shekels compared to 2023, on the eve of the war.
“We are allocating a huge budget to strengthen the army this year, but also one that allows us to return the State of Israel to a path of growth and relief for citizens,” Smotrich said, according to his office.
Reuters contributed to this report.