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09.10.2006

Information implication of the war

   

Gagik Terteryan 

It is difficult to give estimation to the role of information operations in Middle East developments. According to the director of Middle East program of Washington’s Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), information, propaganda and political technologies are the main weapons of the war escalated in July-August 2007. In this field the west has lost its privileged position. Such an approach (which is shared by the majority of the expert community) supposes that it is almost impossible to imagine the latest military-political developments in the Middle East adequately without analyzing information operations.

Information tactics of Israel and the US

The beginning of military operations was conditioned by a definite internal political PR: Ehud Olmert, who doesn’t enjoy popularity (most of the people think that but the illness of Ariel Sharon, he would hardly become the prime minister) waged a war under the plea of freeing captivated soldiers to show the Israeli citizens his determination and inexorability “to be a trustee”1. The expression of “Corporal Gilad Shalit to continue operations until liberation” pretended on turning into a slogan and symbol of the victorious war. Olmert’s decision is also interpreted as a mere psychological-“training” action, during which the new generation of Israelis “must learn to win Arabs”. However the further developments devaluated the slogans of “Corporal’s liberation” and “learning to win”: They lost their propagandistic significance and the confronting parties are at the moment negotiating to exchange the captives.

As post-war internal-political developments in Israel show, in particular the accusations brought against Olmert’s administration, president Katsav and Tzahal, the authorities of those countries face serious problems in inner information-psychological field. According to some experts, the present situation may be characterized as a system crisis, which will further the rise of emigration (at present each year for about 25 thousand people immigrate and 5 thousand emigrate the country).

Regardless of the final results, Israel’s information tactics used against its direct enemies is more then active. The very first day of military operations the war planes of that country attempted to bombard and exterminate the main antenna of Al-Manar television of “Hezbollah”, but it failed. Israel’s operations of bombarding “International federation of Journalists” were strongly criticized. The later one showed its protest by leaving the federation, but taking into consideration not favorable information conditions to Israel in international community, it had to stop the attempts of bombarding Al-Manar. At the same time Tzahal didn’t stop the attempts to upset the TV’s regular work, especially the broadcasting of TV news by electronic means.

The Israeli part was also active in internet. At wartime the Israeli Foreign Ministry assigned the students of diplomatic departments to be more active and take part in different internet forums and in their diaries (so called blogs) insert massages favorable for Israel. As it is known that such technologies are also used by military units of American and Chinese military forces of “psychological operations”. A special program has been worked out by “The World Union of Jewish Students” which provides an opportunity to unify all the members of that union through internet. Thus, if any of the union members saw an anti-Israeli publication or palls and inquiries on war in any of the web sites, the other members of the “net” (for about 15 thousand people) were automatically being informed about it and responded it in a proper way. We consider that adoption and implementation of such a program is advisable for information operations on RA-Nagorni Karabakh relations. Let’s notice that there are certain information and personnel potential for carrying out such a program.

During military operations the Israelis wildly used instigating-propagandistic telephone calls (through Alfa Mtc and Touch Israeli telephone network) and SMS messages. According to Arabian mass media they had a concentrated character and were organized by Tzahal. The telephone calls and messages aimed at exerting psychological pressure and creating negative attitude to “Hezollah”: The later one was presented as the main source of unhappiness of the Arabs. Let’s notice that at a certain period the Arabian part began implementing such kind of telephone technologies against Israel too.

However the most extensive information operation of the war should be considered the disclosure of terrorist net in Great Britain on August 10, which was planning aircraft explosions. Not excluding the existence of such a net and the possibility of the terrorist act to be carried out, one should state as a fact that spread of information on this issue has gained a total character2 in the context favorable both for Israel and the US, as their struggle is also considered to be anti-terrorist. The leak of information on terrorists, as well as many discussions on aircraft flights withdrew information on Israeli-Arabian conflict, which was at the moment not favorable for Israel, out of information field: peaceful population and children were falling victim in Lebanon and during military operations were abolished Israeli defense technology. That’s to say the scenario of British terrorists aimed at diverting international community’s attention from the developments in Middle East.

There was a lot of information on British aerial terrorists in American mass media. As a result for a while people stopped elucidating Middle East developments in that country thus causing an unprecedented demonstration of protest in Washington, directed against lack of information on Arab-Israeli conflict in the US mass media.

As a matter of fact in the first phase of the war Israel took the initiative in informational field. However the further developments changed the situation. As a particular reason the journalists pointed out Israeli rough military censorship (it was prohibited to inform about the number of Israeli casualties, the after-effects of rocketing, etc.) which was obeyed unwillingly, and it raised additional dissatisfaction to Israeli actions. Let’s notice that the chief censor of that country has a right to close any newspaper, TV program, and in general at wartime he can order to stop elucidation of military operations. The authorities in Lebanon “Hezbollah” adopted quite different tactics to journalists giving them absolute freedom in the territories under their control.

The outline of Islamic world’s information tactics

Arabic TV-stations (especially Al Zazira), information-propagandistic means were very active during the conflict. In particular they were able to solve the following tasks put before them:

  • Was suspended the enemy’s plans splitting up the population of Shia “Hezbollah” and Palestinian and Lebanese Sunnis (which was Israel’s strategic goal).
  • Inspired the Islamic world and partially international community by the illusion of undeniable victory of Arabs and in such a way discreded the semi-centennial myth that Israel is invincible.
  • By their actions they furthered the process of logical unification of the spitted Arabic world.

One should stress up that the US and Israeli information operations during the conflict were mainly directed to Iran. Let’s mention the announcement of an eminent political scientist Bernard Luice in American press that the day of the truce, on August 21, Iran will strike a nuclear blow on Israel. The Iranian sites were also working operatively (Iranatom.ru, Iran.ru). In particular the main subject of every day information flow of Iran.ru (system@iran.ru) appeared in e-mails of analytical centers and analysts: In such a way it was suggested to make use of information supplied by the site. It is also notable that Iran’s president Ahmadinejad opened his own site at wartime (in Farsi, Arabic, English and French) where one can find not only information on his biography but also the latest publications representing Ahmadinejad’s approach to different political and public phenomenon.

Ahmadimejad’s suggestion made to Bush to have a TV debate also yields to logics of information war. It is especially important that in informational field Iran was able to change the image of Islam for international community: instead of not organized, yelling crowd was presented a society obstinate in struggle and using the latest technologies.

Information perception of war in International Community

In international community the war initiated by Israel was accepted in the context of American policy carried out in Iraq, towards which has already been formed a stable negative approach. It is obvious that the US geopolitical rivals and heterogeneous organizations, not accepting that power state’s policy, have an important role in forming anti-Israeli and anti-American moods in global information field.

 

Formation of negative public opinion to Israel greatly furthered spreading information on killed peaceful women and children. In particular, the right protecting organization Amnesty International denounced Israel in military crimes. It is also noteworthy to point out the fact that the Arabic party sometimes supplied the information agencies with falsified shots and data. After war many articles and materials against neoconservatives and Israeli lobby appeared in America were.

As for the role of mass media in Armenia, one may state as a fact the following. The comments of CNN and Euronews differed a lot: if the first one had a clear cut anti - Hezbollah orientation, then the second showed more even-tempered approach putting a stress on the humanitarian part of the issue. BBC took a more balanced position equally criticizing Hezbollah and Israel.

The Russian TV channel РТР surfaced quite anti-Israeli and pro- Arabic position, while “Первый канал” commented military operations a bit more reserved. In general, Russian mass media were more well-disposed to Arabs: Let’s only point out that РТР, «Первый канал» and НТВ transmitted Hezbollah’s information materials 253 times and the Israeli ones only 36 times. We don’t know the position the developments in Middle East were elucidated from in RA TV programs, as we have no information on special monitoring data, and the impressions got may be subjective. At the same time the absence of such a monitoring has come to prove about serious omissions in the sphere of RA information security.

Conclusions

Information-psychological factor had an important role in the last war in Middle East. Israel and its ally US incurred significant losses in information-psychological field in spite of their privilege in military field and partially solving the tasks of tactical importance put before them. It is conditioned by the fact that in the US, Israel-Islamic world permanent struggle the latter ones showed opposition not by terroristic-shaidian means, but in the sphere of technology: they manifested military skills and presented their successes and the enemy’s failure to the international community through appropriate information-psychological technologies.

1 It is noteworthy that when in the past Israeli soldiers were taken captive and killed, Ariel Sharon, well known as “hawk”, was reasonable enough not to begin large-scale military operations against Hezbollah.

2 Information operations concerning to British terrorists were more likely worked out in the US. The subject of terrorism has become an important element of the American information policy (it is noteworthy that as a result of totally spreading information on British terrorists, Bush’s rating has raised a little). Besides it is the only country which has resources to “fill” the global information field. Let’s only notice that since 1953 was founded the US Information Agency (USIA) under the direct control of the US National Security Council which is headed by the president’s national security chief adviser. The Agency has more then 10 thousand staff and 200 bureaus in more then 120 countries of the world and issues information programs in 62 languages. By the order of the president in 1999 another structure was founded called Group of International Public Information (IPI), which has a task to influence on feelings and behavior of foreign governments, organizations and individuals by using information got from special services. At the same time at present the mechanism of the American information wars in Middle East doesn’t work sufficiently. The fact that that the American command in Iraq made a decision to allocate $20 million for monitoring of mass media of America and Middle East has come to prove it. The Aim of monitoring is to create a united data base and on this ground improve the image of the US. It is characteristic that program’s framework it is planned to provoke 4-8 “positive” events a month and elucidate them from the position favorable for the US.


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