Isr*el has pumped more than $1 billion into “direct public diplomacy” targeting the American political ecosystem since the G*za g*nocide following 7 October 2023, a new report published by the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft reveals.
Titled ‘The Eighth Front: Inside Isr*el’s $1 Billion Influence Campaign’, the study details a massive structural pivot toward direct influence operations registered under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), a 1938 US law requiring individuals and groups who lobby for foreign entities to register with the Department of Justice.
While historical pro-Isr*el influence relied heavily on American bodies like the American Isr*el Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), the deep unpopularity of the g*nocide in G*za compelled Isr*el to take direct control of messaging.
Isr*el is currently on track to become the largest FARA spender, utilising networks coordinated through firms like Havas Media.
The multi-million-dollar apparatus deploys tactics including: direct influencer compensation, mass text messaging, geo-fenced church ad campaigns targeting Evangelicals, and utilising firms like Clock Tower X to shape how artificial intelligence discuss the Occupation Entity.
Although the shift towards FARA, in theory, creates a paper trail, the Quincy Institute say that “significant gaps in compliance and transparency remain,” with: organisations” conducting clear lobbying activities [failing] to register as lobbyists,” some new firms “openly [flouting] transparency requirements”, and paid influencers not disclosing their financial relationships with the Isr*eli government.
Despite constructing an unprecedented foreign influence infrastructure to target young Americans, conservatives, and religious communities, the report notes that these operations have largely failed to halt the erosion of public support driven by the ongoing g*nocide.
