“…The lawsuits expose Israel’s so-called ‘eighth front,’ a digital effort to influence global opinion in support of Israel and vilify those opposing the genocide in Gaza
[…]
The payment disputes unfolding inside Israel’s propaganda apparatus are emerging alongside broader revelations about the scale of Tel Aviv’s global messaging campaign during the war on Gaza.
Investigations and public filings have shown that Israeli-linked public relations firms paid US social media influencers thousands of dollars per post to promote pro-Israel narratives online.
Documents submitted under the US Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) revealed payments averaging up to $7,000 per post as part of the so-called “Esther Project,” a propaganda campaign aimed at shaping public opinion on platforms such as TikTok and Instagram in favor of Israel, and demonizing its opposition.
Israel has previously organized carefully managed influencer tours inside Gaza, inviting social media figures to visit aid distribution sites run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), a deadly US-Israeli aid scheme, in an effort to counter international reporting on famine in the enclave.
The visits were presented as proof that Israel was facilitating humanitarian assistance, despite extensive documentation by numerous organizations, including the UN, showing that the famine in Gaza was a direct result of Israel’s systematic restrictions on humanitarian aid and its obstruction of relief deliveries.
These initiatives form part of what Israeli officials themselves have described as the “eighth front” of the war – a parallel battle over narrative and perception fought across social media platforms, advertising networks, and AI-driven digital campaigns designed to shape global opinion about the war in Gaza…”