Two years since the Gaza war: Israel losing the narrative war

Author: Ashraf Al-Ajrami

Two years after the genocidal war Israel is waging in the Gaza Strip — which began after Hamas’s attack on the Gaza periphery — the results of the war appear to be completely contrary to what the hardline Israeli government led by Benjamin Netanyahu intended and sought. Even if it wanted to take revenge on Gaza and eradicate the Gazan reality it views as a problem that obstructs and disrupts its plans. Retribution dominated the early phase of the war before the idea emerged of eliminating Gaza, displacing the population to other countries that would accept them, re-occupying Gaza and remaining there, and perhaps restoring settlements to their pre-2005 state. In the early stages Israel succeeded in marketing its narrative about Hamas’s attack — emphasizing the movement’s brutality and exaggerating civilian targeting, rape allegations and other atrocities. Israel thereby gained a green light for its war on Gaza on the grounds that it was a war against “Hamas,” and those who supported Israel did not imagine it would go this far in brutality and criminality, committing war crimes and crimes against humanity up to the level of genocide.
Now, two years into the war, a quick assessment shows that Israel is in the worst position it has faced since its founding: it has been exposed as a rogue and criminal state and no longer appears — at least in the Western arena — as the oasis of democracy and progress in the Middle East, or as a state that respects international law and norms. Western countries have not only recognized the State of Palestine to preserve a two-state solution amid Israel’s accelerating settlement and de facto annexation policies carried out by its government since the war began as part of Israel’s response to the Hamas attack; many countries have begun imposing sanctions on Israel and on Israeli officials, especially after the International Court of Justice agreed to hear a case filed by South Africa accusing Israel of war crimes and after the advisory opinion the same court issued on settlements. The International Criminal Court also issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his defense minister Yoav Gallant in connection with crimes committed by Israel in the Gaza Strip.
Israel now feels an escalating isolation that Netanyahu acknowledged in his widely noted “Great Sparta” speech. Practically, some Western countries have begun boycotting settlers’ goods and leaders — notably ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir. Countries such as Spain have canceled contracts with Israeli companies. Investments have been withdrawn from Israel, such as moves by Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, which the article describes as having capital of $2 trillion, which pulled investments from Caterpillar and five Israeli banks. This may presage broader withdrawal of European investments from Israel to avoid any implication in war crimes. Even if countries like Germany and Italy use the so-called “emergency brake” to suspend parts of the EU-Israel trade agreement, that does not mean the agreement will hold for long given Israel’s blatant violations of Palestinian rights. There are calls to boycott Israel in the Horizon program, the $100 billion research and innovation fund. European countries may apply unilateral sanctions on Israel, potentially leading to a comprehensive collective stance.

Sanctions are already appearing in sports and culture. UEFA’s executive committee may vote to suspend the Israeli national team and all Israeli clubs from European competitions. Culturally, the Flanders Festival in Ghent, Belgium, canceled a performance by the Munich Philharmonic earlier this month because its conductor Lahav Shani is Israeli and also leads the Israel Philharmonic. More than 4,000 actors and film directors have announced a boycott of Israeli institutions. There is even the possibility of Israel being expelled from the Eurovision Song Contest; countries such as the Netherlands, Spain, Ireland and Slovenia have threatened to boycott the contest if Israel is invited to participate.

The greatest loss is not only the deterioration of Western public opinion and the shift of positions of countries that once supported Israel in all circumstances, such as the Netherlands, but more importantly the loss of support among American Jews: 48% now oppose Israeli policy versus 46% who support it, and 68% view Netanyahu’s policies negatively. There is also a significant shift in American public opinion, with 32% supporting Israel and 60% opposing it.

President Donald Trump’s plan — which Israel accepted reluctantly and which was accepted by many Arab and Muslim countries and by Hamas — provides Israel with a golden opportunity to try to repair the image shattered by acts of genocide. It will take Israel a long time to rebuild the narrative it has lost because of its crimes. It cannot turn back the clock, despite Netanyahu’s attempts to pump large sums into social media programs to relaunch the campaign to criminalize Hamas and absolve Israel. What would serve Israel better is adopting a message in favor of ending the conflict and the occupation, granting the Palestinian people their legitimate rights and adhering to international law. But that is impossible under the current extreme right-wing, racist government. The opportunity may come only if that government is toppled in the next election, which could be held early.