In March of 2025, the Israeli government unilaterally ended the Gaza ceasefire (a ceasefire it violated countless times) and restarted bombing Palestinian refugee camps within five different municipalities of Gaza City. The pretext for the bombings was to target senior Hamas officials; however, within days, the Zionist occupation killed 400 people, at least 100 of whom were children.
Politically and from the perspective of the greater topic of Israel’s war on Gaza, there is a lot to talk about. Since the ceasefire went into effect on January 19 and until Tuesday’s surprise attack, Israel killed 155 Palestinians in sporadic strikes and attacks on the enclave.
Beyond the physical violence of bullets and bombs against Palestinians, a subtler war has persisted since Israel’s founding and the imposition of Zionism within the region. This is a war that can be traced back to the establishment of Zionism itself, and the Zionist literature that accompanied its cause, leading up to and throughout the establishment of the Israeli occupation. This is the violence that allows Israel to conduct these violations, massacres, and still enjoy near-total support from the West.
The kind of war in question here is not one conducted by weapons and airstrikes. It does not result in horrific images of torn-apart babies, children and women. Instead, it seeps into the minds and souls of millions globally, utilising the most effective and emotive means of communication: the arts.
Silencing and Stifling the Palestinian Voice
The concept of “artwashing” has gained recent attention following Israel’s offensive on Gaza starting on 7 October 2023. Still, its history extends further, deeply rooted in colonialism and the rise of capitalist-imperialism in the contemporary world.
In the shadow of relentless bombings, apartheid walls, and military checkpoints, a subtle war rages on – and that is a war for narrative. While Palestinians are silenced, displaced, or killed, Israel exports a curated image of itself as a beacon of art, culture, and liberal-progressive values that are palatable to its primary financier and political backer – the United States of America.
Artwashing serves as a potent and sophisticated tool of Israeli propaganda, injecting Zionism into the arts to justify occupation and apartheid while defending Israel’s criminality. Through state-sponsored films, international art festivals, global media partnerships and more, Israel repositions itself as a cultural hub, deflecting attention from the occupation and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians and in some cases outwardly justifying it. This strategy extends policies historically employed by the UK and the US regarding their colonial doctrines, past and present.
Art in the hands of the Zionist occupation is devoid of authentic expression and is instead a weapon used to erase, distract, and justify oppression.
Artwashing, first and foremost, refers to the erasure and destruction of Palestinian artists’ work and eventually, their lives, as we have seen in so many instances over the past 1.5 years of Israeli assault on Gaza. It is not possible to give due credit to the countless names and artistic visions within the scope of this piece. These killings are also not “by accident” or “collateral damage” as Zionist propaganda outlets may insist. Israel uses AI-powered technology to compile “kill lists” in Gaza – the destruction of artists is likely intentional to suppress the creation of Palestinian art itself.
One of the first artistic casualties of Israel’s war on Gaza was Inas al-Saqa, a Palestinian playwright and actor, who was killed in late October 2023 along with three of her children. Saqa acted in the 2014 Palestinian film Sara, which was directed by Khalil al-Muzayen and tackled honour killings in the Arab world. She was also in the movie The Homeland’s Sparrow, which was produced in Gaza and directed by Mustafa al-Nabih. Even though her legacy will live on, her life was cut short from this world and was stopped from creating more art for the future generations of Palestinians, as well as the conscientious people of the world.
More recently, among the martyrs, there is Dorgham Quraiqi, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike on March 18. Quraiqi was working with a UK-based charity named Hope and Play, and he was killed alongside his wife and brothers when Israeli airstrikes hit the ruins of their home in Gaza City’s Shuja’iyya neighbourhood, where they were sheltering. Quraiqi was a celebrated artist, and his figurative oil paintings were widely displayed in Gaza, showcasing his exceptional talent. He also volunteered to implement a famous mural in 2022, depicting the Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, killed by the Israeli occupation forces in 2022.
Exporting the Zionist Narrative
Israel’s killing of the creative potential is only one side of the art-washing coin.
Outside of destroying the Palestinian narrative and artistic potential, Israel takes the offensive and establishes its own artificial, deflective narrative that refutes anything from the Palestinian cause. Israel utilises its state-funded (resourced heavily by the United States) cultural projects, media, film, music, art festivals, and international collaborations to rebrand itself as a vibrant, liberal, artistic democracy, while systematically oppressing Palestinians through occupation, apartheid policies, and military aggression.
By exporting Zionist “culture,” Israel diverts global attention from the realities of Palestinian displacement, blockades, and war crimes. The strategy is simple: flood the international stage with Israeli art, music, and film that showcase “shared humanity” or “universal struggles,” at the same time Palestinians are deprived of basic rights, cultural preservation, or even life itself. Israel’s use of cultural events to distract from the occupation has been criticised by many. Just like 7 October was not the starting point of the history of Israel’s brutal occupation of Palestine, it is not the starting point of Israeli artwashing of Palestinian stories.
For instance, Israel has strategically invested in international cultural events such as the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 in Tel Aviv (and continuing to send contestants to Eurovision, despite objection from European countries, as well as Israel positioning itself in the Middle East – Asia), as well as global arts festivals, film screenings, museum exhibitions, and international cultural exchange programs. By hosting these high-profile events, Israel aims to present itself as a diverse, progressive, and vibrant democracy, inviting global audiences to engage with its colonial cultural scene while deliberately diverting attention from its occupation of Palestinian territories. Israel’s arts initiative effectively works as a shield to prevent the global community from seeing Israel for what it is: a violent, settler-occupation.
These initiatives are part of a broader “Brand Israel” strategy, launched by the Israeli government in the late 2000s, designed to enhance the country’s international standing by emphasising its technological and artistic aspects while upholding Western liberal cultural values. Through art, music, film, and sports, Israel aims to “normalise” its global standing. In this way, it seeks to make discussions of military occupation, illegal settlements, and human rights violations less visible in the public eye and focus more on its commitment to the ideas brought forth by American hegemony.
Israel uses its artificial soft power to “artwash” the occupation, framing Israel as a modern state that champions Western liberal values, disconnected from its oppressive policies toward Palestinians, or even using its hegemony-aligned positioning as a reason for the oppression of Palestine. The key is to be as closely aligned to the so-called liberal values of American hegemony, as any critique of Israel would be a critique of the global (declining) hegemon.
Cultural diplomacy and soft power have long been tools for countries to enhance their international image and reap long-term benefits, a key feature of international relations. Although the concept of soft power was formulated by the American diplomat Joseph Nye, its application and practice have been in existence for a long time. The idea of using cultural elements to take the pressure off the human rights violations that were committed by a country is also not something specific to Israel. Imperialist countries, such as the United Kingdom, France, and the United States, have been doing this for decades, all the while enhancing their image abroad through many of their powerful institutions backed by their foreign offices and the economic systems.
However, in 2025, when Israel’s carefully crafted credibility has been globally degraded due to the genocide in Gaza and further aggression on the West Bank, its efforts to artwash Palestinian culture and exalt Israeli culture are all the more outrageous.
For example, in the media sphere, how can the focus remain on former Israeli army soldier Gal Gadot receiving a Hollywood Walk of Fame star, given her role in erasing Palestinian memory from their indigenous land? Yet, the media and cultural sector relentlessly promote Gadot, despite her history as an Israeli soldier and an ongoing open propagandist for the Zionist occupation.
Such concentrated media bombardment, however, does not happen spontaneously. There is a very calculated and detailed history of propaganda that Israel has put into motion, especially in recent decades, documented by many independent fact-checkers and news organisations.
“Brand Israel” and other Zionist Media Initiatives
In 2005, Israel launched the “Brand Israel” project to foster positive global perceptions, portraying the country as “relevant and modern” rather than militaristic and fanatical.
“Brand Israel” extended beyond a tourism and media-focused image campaign. It served as a political propaganda effort to mitigate Israel’s internal crises and counter diminishing global support due to its oppressive actions against Palestinian civilians after the conclusion of the second Intifada, which was in February of 2005. Additionally, it aimed to shift focus from the routine land seizures by Israeli settlers and the civilian deaths that marked daily life in Palestine since the initial Nakba.
Following the 2008-2009 Gaza offensive, which killed nearly 200 and injured over 1,000 Palestinians, Israel allocated an additional $2 million to improve its global image through cultural diplomacy and soft power initiatives. Arye Mekel, then deputy director general for cultural affairs, stated that sending renowned novelists, writers, and theatre companies abroad would “show Israel’s prettier face,” contrasting the duplicity of promoting cultural diplomacy amid ongoing aggression against Palestine.
Days before the 2017 Oscars Award ceremony, the Israeli Ministry of Tourism attempted to lure 26 nominees to Israel with extravagant tour packages estimated at around $55,000 per artist. However, according to media reports at the time, many of the artists offered did not accept the packages or participate in the tours.
Although the “Brand Israel” initiative ultimately failed, Israel’s attempts to leverage soft power to bolster its global image reveal an awareness of its declining international reputation. This downward trend over recent decades stems from numerous aggressive actions against Palestinians, notably the 2014 military offensive in Gaza, which resulted in over 2,200 Palestinian deaths.
After October 7, 2023, Israel has allocated a significant amount of its cultural propaganda efforts to maintain the asinine, self-given title of “the most moral army in the world.” For example, the National Library of Israel launched a project called “Bearing Witness” to compile and exhibit art and testimonials showing the Israeli experience of the Palestinian-led Al Aqsa Flood operation. This initiative aims to prioritise narratives that highlight Israeli resilience and suffering, starkly deleting and whitewashing the Palestinian experience, all the while justifying any horrendous actions taken by the Israeli military.
Amid artwashing efforts to obscure the genocide, the Oscar-winning documentary No Other Land emerges as global outrage grows over the Gaza genocide and the illegal displacement of tens of thousands of Palestinians from the West Bank. The unrelenting assault by Israel’s highly advanced military force has sparked widespread anger and solidarity worldwide, putting Zionism on its back foot in the socio-political arena. Despite ongoing misinformation from Western media and governments, this outrage persists, with many distrusting so-called “ceasefire” or “peace agreements” proposed by those perpetrating these atrocities.
During their Oscar acceptance speech, which reached millions globally, co-directors Basel Adra, a Palestinian, and Yuval Abraham, an Israeli, condemned the long-standing injustices against Palestinians. They spoke out against the ethnic cleansing taking place, the devastation of Gaza, and the role of the U.S. government in obstructing peace and perpetuating a system rooted in ethnic dominance.
Western cultural institutions applauded Israeli activist and filmmaker Yuval’s impassioned speech but showed less enthusiasm for Palestinian Basel Adra’s remarks. More troubling, these institutions continue to support entities involved in crimes against Palestinians in the West Bank, which is the central issue addressed by No Other Land.
For instance, the 62nd New York Film Festival was conducted in partnership with Bloomberg Philanthropies, an organisation actively involved in supporting settlement development in the West Bank and contributing to the denial of fundamental rights for Palestinians, according to a statement by Screen Slate. In collaboration with the Sagol Family, Bloomberg Philanthropies operates the Bloomberg-Sagol Center for City Leadership. In the past year, the program included training for mayors and city officials from Modi’in Illit and the Mateh Binyamin Regional Council – authorities representing over 40 West Bank settlements that were deemed illegal by the International Court of Justice in July 2024.
Funding settlement infrastructure in these conditions is not charity but complicity in war crimes. The polite smiles of Hollywood and cultural industry figures on stage reflect hypocrisy and tacit support for whitewashing genocide. Filmmakers and cultural practitioners must not allow their artistic work to serve as a cover for war crimes and occupation.
The film October 8th furthermore serves as an excellent example of Zionist attempts to reclaim the narrative from its current global degradation. It is a film that conflates the critique of Israel with anti-Semitism and attempts to justify the genocide in Gaza. It is a dangerous display of war mongering and anti-Palestinian racism. The film openly calls for the criminalisation of student protests across the US, while the US government is actively targeting many students due to their advocacy of Palestinian rights. The TIFF Lightbox screening theatre at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival showed many screenings of the film, displaying the complicity of establishment arts institutions with world imperialism and Zionism. The film features many prominent Zionists who accuse any kind of pro-Palestinian activism of being hateful and racist. Among these Zionist influencers is Shai Davidai, who was banned from the campus of Columbia University for harassing pro-Palestinian students.
Challenging the Colonial Narrative
Facing an ongoing genocide, the global art world stands at a moral juncture. It can no longer remain a neutral bystander as cultural institutions whitewash occupation and apartheid. The art world must reject its complicity and prioritise Palestinian voices—both those silenced and those persisting amid relentless devastation.
Now more than ever, we need cultural projects that reflect the authentic experiences of Palestinians. Projects that do not speak over them, reinterpret their pain, or dilute their stories for the comfort of international audiences. We need films, exhibitions, festivals, and platforms that boldly present the realities of occupation, dispossession, resistance, and survival. These projects should be supported, funded, and amplified—not just as a gesture of solidarity, but as a necessary corrective to the decades of erasure and propaganda that have defined the global narrative around Palestine.
Simply stated: the arts must be liberated from the grip of imperialist, colonialist frameworks.
To claim that art stands for justice, freedom, and humanity means standing with the oppressed, not the oppressor. The art world cannot continue to reward institutions and individuals complicit in war crimes. At the same time, Palestinian artists are buried under rubble, their voices stifled before they’ve had a chance to speak. True cultural diplomacy requires truth-telling. And truth-telling begins with listening to—and investing in—those who have been silenced for far too long.
This writer is a guest contributor who underwent Vox Ummah vetting. Due to circumstances regarding their safety, the author has chosen to remain anonymous.
