Israel Fights Hamas On Twitter
Slate
The latest conflict in the Middle East isn’t only being fought on the ground. As documented by sites like Buzzfeed, the most recent flareup in the Gaza Strip between the State of Israel and Hamas, the terrorist group that controls the Palestinian enclave, has been fought on Twitter as ferociously as on the battlefield. The Israel Defense Forces has its own Twitter account: @idfspokesperson which has been live-tweeting Israel’s response to Hamas’s continued bombardment of Israeli civilians.
The IDF account has been a full force multimedia offensive. There is a YouTube video of a targeted strike on Ahmad Jabari, the head of Hamas’s military wing, pictures intended to be retweeted as viral content and even a Tumblr.
Hamas has also taken to Twitter. When the IDF mockingly tweeted “We recommend that no Hamas operatives, whether low level or senior leaders, show their faces above ground in the days ahead,” the Hamas account responded. It returned the threat stating “Our blessed hands will reach your leaders and soldiers wherever they are (You Opened Hell Gates on Yourselves).”
This is becoming the first significant conflict of the social media age where both sides are using tools like Twitter for propaganda. It certainly won’t be decisive in the conflict. After all, Voice of America didn’t win the Cold War nor did Lord Haw Haw lead the Axis to victory. But it will have an impact on popular opinion and news coverage of this divisive conflict in the rest of the world.
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