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The Information War after Sinwar's Death

(Substack) Maj. (ret.) Andrew Fox - In the information war, there is a usual pattern. A newsworthy event happens. There is a coordinated "influencer" messaging push, supported by bot/fake account swarms, to try and dominate the narrative and give the worst possible spin towards Israel. Al Jazeera and other hostile state media amplify the narrative. Mainstream media then run the story as true. A key narrative is Sinwar died a hero fighting on the frontline. This is nonsense. Sinwar was forced out of one tunnel and died trying to get to another. The IDF disrupted the tunnel system to force him above ground, then closed a noose around him. He ran into the cordon and died wounded and defeated. In a video prior to his death, I see a wounded and beaten man throwing a stick in frustration, knowing the immediate inevitability of his own death at the hands of the hated Yahud. Quite some distance from heroism. There is an argument that the IDF should not have released these images and videos as it gives fuel to the "hero" narrative. I disagree. Sinwar's death was always going to lead to his lionization as a martyr, and at least having the videos shows the lie to the myth. My prediction is that the social media storm will have little impact on IDF operations. Israel has made it very clear that they are fighting to the finish, world opinion be damned. The writer, who served in the British Army from 2005-21, is a research fellow at the Henry Jackson Society and a lecturer at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.
2024-10-22 00:00:00
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