Two years into the war and under mounting criticism of weak messaging, Israel’s government is set to approve a new Foreign Ministry Public Diplomacy Unit to fight Hamas’s global propaganda campaigns and digital disinformation.
The Israeli government is expected to approve on Sunday the creation of a “Public Diplomacy Unit” within the Foreign Ministry, a move aimed at overhauling how the country presents itself on the global stage.
The decision follows sustained criticism of Israel’s public diplomacy failures during the ongoing conflict, where Hamas has leveraged slick media campaigns, social networks, and sympathetic international outlets to advance its narrative.
A New Weapon in the Media War
The new unit will be tasked with coordinating and managing Israel’s image internationally, with enhanced authority to:
- Recruit civilian actors, including bloggers, influencers, and digital media experts.
- Directly combat disinformation and online hate speech targeting Israel.
- Operate more flexibly than traditional bureaucratic bodies, with the head of the unit able to be appointed without a formal tender.
The intent is to boost Israel’s agility in responding to fast-moving propaganda and online campaigns, areas where critics say Hamas and its supporters have long outpaced Israel.
Beyond the Existing Division
The Foreign Ministry currently runs a public diplomacy division, but the new unit is designed to significantly expand its reach and effectiveness, particularly in the digital and social media sphere, where international opinion is shaped in real time.
Israeli officials argue that public diplomacy must now be treated as a strategic front line of warfare, alongside military and diplomatic efforts.
With the UN, global media, and street protests increasingly hostile, Israel’s leaders hope the new unit will finally allow Jerusalem to seize back narrative control and push back against delegitimization campaigns.
