JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel's prime minister kicked off the unofficial start of his new election campaign with a move straight out of his old playbook: attacking the media and pandering to his nationalist base.

After a sleepy summer, longtime Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu has launched a blistering assault on an Israeli TV channel, accusing it of tarnishing him and fomenting anti-Semitism.

He's also used the opening of the new school year to pledge he would annex and expand Jewish West Bank settlements.

It was a dramatic escalation in the long-time war he's been waging against the local media, which he routinely accuses of conspiring against him.

Israel is holding an unprecedented do-over election this month after Netanyahu failed to secure a parliamentary majority in April's vote.