Senior government officials admit that Israel's public opinion in the international community "has never been worse." According to them, the situation only worsens, and the support the world has shown Israel following Hamas’s attack on October 7 has already been forgotten.
More stories:
The officials added that the intensity of accusations made against Israel only increases, and attempts to equate Hamas's actions in Israel are being made, with allegations accusing IDF soldiers of sexually harassing Palestinian prisoners.
Ministers in the government blame Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the complete neglect of Israel’s public relations: "There’s no leader present; it’s been abandoned. A pandemic of sanctions against Israel may break out, and if we don't wake up, it will be too late. Something big needed to be done in terms of public relations, we need to rally the Jewish people and launch an international campaign. There’s no leader to head this. We’re losing. Our friends tell us: we support you, but you’re losing in the court of public opinion."
A senior figure in Israel's advocacy efforts added, "They neutralized the Foreign Ministry and took away all its budget. The Foreign Ministry has no funding. To this day, no money was delivered. We’re working with a budget of 2 million shekels allocated for the war since the beginning of the year.
“Each U.S. consulate receives $5,000 a year for public relations efforts, including Independence Day events. For example, the consulate in Boston, which is also responsible for MIT, has to struggle to have such an amount. It’s ridiculous. When you already have a talented spokesman like Eylon Levy, they unjustly suspend him. He was one of the few people who did his mission in the most talented, beautiful, and correct way, and they sent him home,” the source said.
Internal reports from Israeli missions in the United States describe a very harsh picture of Israeli coverage in the American media. One report described, "The media awaited a sign from the government for a policy change, and when it arrived - it unleashed a rampage and published constant harsh criticism against Israel that had always existed. The harsh reports from Gaza, alongside internal tensions in the U.S., threaten to push moderate writers from the mainstream to adopt critical positions toward Israel and demand an immediate and permanent cease-fire.”
'the graphic images undermine the war’s legitimacy'
“Pressure on the Biden administration to harden its stance toward Israel and condition military aid for an Israeli policy change constitutes a warning sign for the future,” the report added. “In terms of 'color,' we’re currently in a 'dark orange.'
“There’s a change in stances even among staunch supporters of Israel – and while the conservative media fully supported Israel's actions in the past, this time voices questioning the proportionality of Israeli action have also been heard. However, no demand for a cease-fire is expected to appear in those media outlets. Without a fundamental change in the humanitarian issue in Gaza and/or signs on the diplomatic solution on the horizon, criticism of Israel in the media is expected to intensify,” the report read.
It was added, "In the last month, the U.S. media’s spotlight turned to the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza, with special emphasis given to the suffering of Rafah residents against the backdrop of the possibility of the IDF expanding the ground operation there as well. Leading media outlets flooded screens and front pages with images of starving children, trauma victims, and the destruction of homes and hospitals. Reports and personal stories from Rafah led to empathy toward the Palestinians’ suffering and anger toward Israel's military actions.
"Although most media outlets refrained from blaming Israel for creating the crisis intentionally or denying its right to self-defense, opinion pieces sparked fierce debate regarding the proportionality and morality of the ongoing military operation in its current form. Critical voices that were once silenced now have a wider platform.
“Reports focused on the immense humanitarian damages and the harm to innocent civilians, which many analysts argue is unjustified and goes against the values of the IDF’s operation. Even publicists who supported Israel in the past admitted that the graphic images undermine the war’s legitimacy,” the report read.
“Against this backdrop, a narrative is emerging among liberal authors, which sees the Biden administration and its policy of providing weapons and diplomatic support to Israel as responsible for the situation, or at least as someone who can bring it to an end."
Furthermore, dozens of recent opinion pieces represent a wide range of positions regarding the IDF’s legitimacy, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, the question of a cease-fire, and the future of U.S.-Israel relations: Conservative media outlets like The Wall Street Journal and The New York Post fully support Israel, advocate for continued military action against Hamas, and refrain from calling for an immediate and prolonged stop to the war.
In contrast, newspapers identified with the center and liberal left, including The New York Times and The Washington Post, criticize the war’s escalation, citing the destructive consequences of the confrontation on Palestinian civilians, and therefore calling for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire, the reports explained.
3 View gallery
Joe Biden and Chuck Schumer, Benjamin Netanyahu
(Photo: AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, Miriam Elster)
The reports also expose an erosion of Israel's standing in Washington against the backdrop of the escalation in the Gaza war. This was clearly reflected in U.S. President Joe Biden's statement regarding a "red line" on military operations in Rafah, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer's speech.
Most analysts don’t foresee an immediate shift in relations between the countries, but caution against potential political damage to both sides. Furthermore, calls are increasing to use American military aid to Israel as leverage to force policy change in Jerusalem. However, warnings have been raised that the fact of having this discussion could bolster Hamas's position and undermine the chances of a cease-fire.
While conservative media outlets present Israel's policy as legitimate self-defense, liberal media outlets provide a platform for writers who echo the Palestinian narrative, sometimes using rhetoric accusing Israel of "apartheid" and even "genocide." Calls for the U.S. government to distance itself from supporting Israel and reconsider its military aid plan are becoming more common, even in moderate media outlets.
The report mentions articles in The Washington Post and The Daily Beast highlighting the effectiveness of pro-Palestinian activists in influencing public opinion in the U.S., especially among progressive Democratic voters. The articles point to growing discontent with the Biden administration's support for Israel, reflected in "Uncommitted" votes in the Democratic primaries and disruptions at party events.
Tactics such as demanding a cease-fire and using the term "genocide" have succeeded in keeping the war at the forefront of the national political agenda and increasing pressure on Washington to minimize its support of Israel.
The increasing willingness of Democratic politicians to criticize Israel suggests a shift in the party's traditional stance and leads to speech free of restraint in media outlets as well. This trend reached its zenith with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer's speech, in which he labeled Netanyahu an "obstacle to peace" and accused him of damaging Israel's international standing, calling for early Israeli elections.