Campaign questions mental fitness of Netanyahu's rival

FILE - In this Wednesday, March 27, 2019 file photo, retired Israeli general Benny Gantz, one of the leaders of the Blue and White party, prepares to deliver a speech during election campaigning for elections to be held April 9, in Ramat Gan, Israel. Down in the polls, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud Party has released a new campaign trying to paint Gantz, his main rival, as mentally unstable. The video ads are the latest move in a campaign that has been heavy on personal insults and short on substance. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty, File)

JERUSALEM – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud Party has released a new campaign trying to paint his main rival, former military chief Benny Gantz, as mentally unstable.

The video ads are the latest move in a campaign that has been heavy on personal insults and short on substance. Elections are scheduled on April 9.

Likud has tried to capitalize on Gantz's fumble in two television interviews last week, by publishing a video with extracts zooming in on the former general's wide-eyed look with the signature violin screech from Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho" playing in the background.

Recent polls have placed Gantz's Blue and White party ahead of Netanyahu's Likud. Gantz's campaign has stressed his security credentials — an important quality with the Israeli electorate.