The Israeli government has been reportedly paying Google to run a campaign aimed at discrediting the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) through targeted online advertisements, according to a Wired report.
This campaign emerged around the time Israel accused twelve UNRWA staff members of involvement in a Hamas attack on Israel in October. Israeli officials branded UNRWA as a Hamas front and urged international donors, including the US, to halt their funding.
The objective of the campaign was to tarnish UNRWA’s reputation and reduce donations to UNRWA USA, which had seen a significant surge in contributions due to the ongoing Gaza conflict.
Sources within Google indicated that this ad campaign was notable for being the first known instance in years of the Israeli government targeting political ads in Arab countries.
The campaign appeared to cease around May after Wired began inquiries with Israel’s foreign ministry and Middle Eastern publishers. It is unclear if the ads are still active, as Google lacks a specific policy governing Israel’s political ads beyond its borders.
Google employees have voiced concerns about the company profiting from what they see as Israel’s effort to shift blame onto UNRWA and divert attention from its role in the Gaza crisis. One employee remarked, “You shouldn’t be taking that money.”
UNRWA spokesperson Juliette Touma condemned the ads, stating they had severely damaged the agency’s reputation. “These ads are destructive to people,” she said. “They should stop, and those responsible for this sabotage should be held accountable. There should be a lot of follow-up with companies like Google once the war is over. There’s a lot to answer to.”
