Hirsh Goodman for Right Side of the News blames Israel’s delay in revealing “the nature and affiliations of the organizations […]on board” of the Mavi Marmara, dubbed the Freedom Flotilla by Arabs, for the negative international perceptions that followed the raid. The author explains that Israel is now faced with a major public diplomacy blunder that will hinder the Jewish state’s relations with the US, the Arab world and Europe.

Goodman blames the situation on the failure of the Israeli government to address the issue in a timely manner, and scarce attention granted to its public diplomacy in general. The lack of cooperation and the non-alignment of priorities between the intelligence and the Hasbara community has forced Israel to face “economic, artistic, and academic embargoes, continuous attacks in the UN, and other world forums.”

But Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon argues in The Jerusalem Post that Israel’s foreign ministry and other governmental agencies have led a robust public diplomacy campaign “to prepare for the worst, while hoping for the best. In fact the level of coordination before, during and after these events was unprecedented.”

Responding to criticism for the delay in releasing IDF footage of naval commandos being attacked aboard the Mavi Marmara, Ayalon noted, “To be able to disseminate pictures from the operation to apprehend the ships, the IDF had to ensure that no soldier’s faces could be identified and that no operational procedures were broadcast to our enemies... Our first priority is the safety of our citizens, especially when they are on the front lines defending us in increasingly difficult situations.”

Ayalon added that Israel’s public diplomacy has become the country’s new battlefield and is now starting to reap success, noting a positive change of attitude towards Israel by some media outlets that had previously adopted a critical stance.

Israel’s Foreign Minister Agvidor Lieberman also responded to attacks on his country’s public diplomacy efforts regarding the Flotilla in Ynet, waxing that the world holds a biased attitude against the Jewish State and that no amount of public diplomacy will be able to change this trend. He added that words are not enough, “we need to make Hasbara a budgetary priority.”

Citing the disproportionately small budget with which Israel conducts its PR campaigns in Europe compared with those of Arab countries “that face no budgetary constraints and no moral, bureaucratic, or legal limitations,” Lieberman claims that Israel is unequivocally at a disadvantage. Likening Israel and Arab countries to David and Goliath respectively, the foreign minister further laments, “to this we should add the brainwashing by the Arab media enlisted to the Arab cause; high-powered and high-budget media, which include the likes of Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabiya.”

But on a resigned note, Liebermann concludes that justice is on the side of Israel, and consequently, “we would do well to be able to tell the world about it.”

Yossi Klein Hallevi, a fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem, cites for The Wall Street Journal a liberal columnist in the daily Ma'ariv "It's not enough to be right, , one also needs to be smart.”Hallevi argues that the “demonization” of Israel has generated a crisis of confidence, putting its citizens in an uncomfortable situation.

He adds, “The growing estrangement between Israel and world opinion is a tragic negation of the Zionist vision.” And while Israel’s international status has always suffered from international “racism,” Hallevi points out that today, “however misguided, the moral outrage against Israel is real.”

Upholding the UN commissions and courts as “anti-Israel kangaroo courts,” Hallevi notes that, to the bewilderment of the Jewish state and its supporters, other rogue states such as Iran seem to be able to get away with whatever threat they may pose.

Robert Fisk, long term veteran journalist for The Independent argues that Israel launched a propaganda war, hoping that the media will do its job, transforming “the protesters” into "’armed peace activists’, vicious anti-Semites ‘professing pacifism, seething with hate, pounding away at another human being with a metal pole.’”

Fisk decries the tactic employed by Israel claiming that they are affecting media coverage aligned with Israel’s objective, that is, to vilify the people on board of the flotilla regardless of who they were or what happened.

However, according to The Economist, Israel’s mishandling of the flotilla and the subsequent PR campaign, which conveys the idea to the world that Israel resorts to violence too readily and has only further isolated the country, may stem from Israel’s general impression of being besieged. The news site argues that the Israel’s aggressive rhetoric and attitude results from its growing isolation, further weakening its standing in the world.

“The deterioration of Israel’s relations with Turkey, whose citizens were among the nine dead, is depriving Israel of a rare Muslim ally and mediator,” comments the news site. Furthermore, the disquieting growing estrangement of America towards Israel deprives the country of another steadfast ally. Spinning into a “vicious circle,” Israel’s besieged mentality fuels its aggressive attitude which, in turn, incites anti-Israel resentment.

The Economist points out that Arab countries must do more to quell the violence promoted by Islamic and insurgent groups such as Hamas. Israel, the only democracy in the region, “a regional hub of science, business and culture,” suffers from the growing isolation and consequently so do its citizens.

While the world seems to be in dismay that Israel and its citizens defend the actions of the IDF on the Flotilla, The Telegraph explains that given the existential threat the country faces, most particularly from Iran and its nuclear program, this attitude is understandable. The news site defends Israel’s stepped-up propaganda efforts to offset its opponents’ campaigns such as the ones led by Iran, Hezbollah or Hamas, who have become experts in the matter.

“Israel has to learn, and learn quickly, to make the same impact politically and diplomatically as it has traditionally made militarily,” continues the news site, before stressing that it also needs to develop a more subtle approach to its foes.

The Times Online concurs that Iran’s propaganda has been successful in changing the world’s perception of Israel. Portrayed as a waning power, restricted to a small enclave, no longer benefiting from the unconditional support of the United States, Israel is depicted as “facing the might of a resurgent Muslim world under Tehran’s leadership.” Times Online comments that such arguments have been steadily disseminated over the Arab world through Arabic language news channels, such as Al-Alam.

To underline this new image of Israel, the Tehran propaganda machine has replaced footage of poor Palestinians crushed by “Zionists” with that of the growing arsenal of rockets that Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza have built up for what President Ahmadinejad calls “the final assault on the Zionist state”. Israel, which was previously depicted as aggressive and domineering, is now depicted as cowardly. The mullahs in Friday sermons in Iran now claim such things as “the Jew runs away at the first sight of blood”.

The Times adds that Tehran’s tactic has managed to turn one of Israel’s former ally into an enemy, namely Turkey. Believing that its potential adversaries are weak and indecisive, the Khomeinist regime appears determined to push the region to the edge of war and, perhaps, beyond.