Ben Gvir's Folly Burns Millions of Israeli Propaganda: The Freedom Flotilla Triumphs in the Battle of Image

Last week witnessed a new Israeli escalation at sea, as naval forces intercepted about fifty ships forming an international flotilla to break the siege on the Gaza Strip. The flotilla, carrying 430 activists from forty countries, was raided in international waters before reaching its humanitarian destination laden with aid.

The incident did not stop at military interception but turned into a major political scandal after the Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gvir, published a video documenting moments of humiliation of the activists in Ashdod port. The activists appeared in the clip blindfolded and handcuffed in humiliating positions, which sparked a widespread global outcry.

Cameras documented aggressive behavior by security personnel towards foreign female activists, where one of them was pushed for merely shouting for the freedom of Palestine. Meanwhile, Ben Gvir was raising the occupation flag and addressing his soldiers in an arrogant tone, demanding them not to be affected by the cries of the detainees, claiming ownership of the land.

This theatrical behavior put the Israeli government in an embarrassing position before the international community, prompting Benjamin Netanyahu to try to disavow his minister's actions. Netanyahu stated that what happened does not represent the values of the state, in a desperate attempt to contain the diplomatic anger that swept European capitals.

For his part, the Israeli Foreign Minister directed harsh criticism at Ben Gvir, considering that his actions caused deliberate strategic damage to Israel's foreign interests. This damage was evident in the summoning of ten European countries' ambassadors of the occupation to protest the humiliating treatment their citizens, the activists, were subjected to.

In an unprecedented escalation, both Spain and Italy demanded that the European Union impose official sanctions on Ben Gvir for violating international laws. Even traditional allies, such as US Ambassador Mike Huckabee, found no alternative but to condemn these actions, which they described as outside the diplomatic context.

Observers believe that Ben Gvir succeeded in squandering a huge budget allocated by the occupation authorities for propaganda and image improvement, estimated at about 730 million dollars. With a single post on social media platforms, the extremist minister revealed the true face of the occupation that the media machine tries to hide behind slogans of democracy.

Despite the flotilla's failure to physically reach the shores of Gaza, analysts confirm that it achieved a moral and political victory that exceeded expectations. News of the activists topped the front pages of international newspapers, and the issue of the Gaza siege became a rich topic for discussion in international decision-making circles.

This shift in official and popular attitudes in Europe indicates a crack in the wall of silence that had surrounded the occupation's practices for many years. Voices within the entity itself, including former intelligence officers, now acknowledge that the follies of the far-right serve the Palestinian cause more than they serve the goals of the occupation.

Ben Gvir has proven to be the true face of Israeli society, unconcerned with narratives or political calculations, exercising his rudeness without regard for allies.