Israel Spends $50 Million on Online Ads to Deny Starvation in Gaza
Israel has invested $50 million in paid online campaigns to deny reports of forced starvation in Gaza, a joint investigation by Eurovision News and Spain’s RTVE found. Approved in June by Israel’s Exemption Committee, the advertising blitz covers Google, YouTube, X (formerly Twitter), and major European ad platforms Outbrain and Teads, with $45 million allocated to Google and YouTube alone.
Between January and early September 2025, the Israeli government’s state-run agency Lapam ran over 4,000 ads, half of which targeted international audiences. Many promoted videos of Gaza markets and restaurants, garnering over 30 million views in a bid to counter global reports of famine certified by bodies like the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC).
Campaigns were not limited to showcasing market scenes. Lapam also published ads above Google search results in countries such as Belgium, the UK, Denmark, Sweden, and Germany, urging users to question international famine assessments and steering them to official Israeli websites. Another set of sponsored Google results targeted searches for UNRWA, directing users to Israeli government claims that the UN agency on Palestinian refugees acts as a “front for Hamas.”
Prominent critics—including Francesca Albanese, UN special rapporteur for Palestine—were also targeted in paid ads across Europe, accusing them of anti-Semitism for denouncing Israeli actions.
The report highlights how Israel uses social media, paid influencers, and military tours to influence the narrative around Gaza, portraying “normalcy” and denying well-documented humanitarian catastrophes, while fact-checkers and aid agencies warn of catastrophic hunger and malnutrition.
Google, as a main beneficiary of the ad spending, did not respond to repeated requests for comment on policy rules or accountability.
Source: Eurovision News, RTVE, TRT World, DW
