Anti-Israel Mongers on Twitter Out in Full Force Over Snapchat in Tel Aviv

Photo: #TelAvivLive on Twitter

Full disclosure: this is probably going to sound like an opinion piece.

It seems like it has gotten to the point where we really shouldn't be surprised when something as innocuous as Snapchat announcing that Tel Aviv would be featured as one of its live stories will be riddled with anguish, condemnation, and pictures of citizens of Gaza who've been affected by war.

But, still, it resonates in the most hurtful way. Many experts on the Israel-Palestine situation agree that the clear victor in the propaganda war between the two has been the Palestinians. Maybe it's because of the numbers. If you think about it, as there are 1.57 billion Muslims and around 13 to 14 million Jews in the world, with platforms like Twitter there's simply no way of beating those odds.

Let's take a look at a study released just last week by the ADL, finding that some 68% of Muslims in Belgium harbor anti-Semitic attitudes, as well as 62% of German Muslims, 56% of Italian Muslims, 49% of French Muslims and 54% of Muslims living in the United Kingdom.

With this incredibly large amount of said anti-Semitic Muslims (and just people in general these days) able to use channels as easily accessible as Facebook, Twitter or Instagram, statistically, they have access to a far greater online population, and the chance to greatly influence their distorted mentality on Israel.

So, when you search #TelAvivLive on Twitter, instead of seeing Israelis (both Jewish AND Arab) and tourists kicking back on the beach, enjoying themselves the way citizens of democratic and progressive states tend to do, we see pictures of those wounded in last year's war, pictures of Arabs waiting to gain entrance into Israel, condemnations of Israel and her right to exist, of the Jewish people, calling Israel an apartheid state, a land of murderers and oppressors, and so on, and so on.

This is the real #TelAvivLive Criminals vs. Innocents pic.twitter.com/EBgaSSMay2

— (@coolmaster18) July 8, 2015

Notice this one, which got nearly 500 retweets at time of publication, which refers to Israelis as killers and murderers, "laughing" as bombs rained on Gaza.

Best response to #TelAvivLive pic.twitter.com/5l3cg7D2xO

— sahar (@pakrat94up) July 8, 2015

Calling this propaganda would be saying it lightly. Lambasting and solely blaming Israel for the current situation of the Palestinian people has become a commonplace ideology, one that millions of people around the world are taking part in. Even the BDS movement, which in theory seems like a practical political movement, is one that demonizes and dehumanizes Israel, masking its agenda - to obliterate the State of Israel - as "freeing the oppressed" people of Palestine.

But oppressed by who?

They are looking for their history. #TelAvivLive pic.twitter.com/4ENfjkeKuZ

— صقر (@sqrezov) July 7, 2015

No mention is there of Hamas in these tweets (or their participation in the countless deaths of their own people) that blame Snapchat for presenting #TelAvivLive, simply because Tel Aviv is a city in Israel - one, by the way, where the residents are largely in favor of a Palestinian state. Even if the Israeli government is to blame, why are the innocent people of Tel Aviv being punished for it? Why are they not allowed to use Snapchat? Simply because they are Israeli? Isn't there a word to describe absolute and blind hatred of a single race?

Oh yah. Racism.

Hello @Snapchat These are the real stories. Aren't you ashamed of your insolence people? #TelAviv #TelAvivLive pic.twitter.com/bz8QERZvNc

— Rana (@RanaElAmrossy) July 7, 2015

Israel is being held accountable for being an 'apartheid' state, and for those who believe in this theory, I implore you to take to Snapchat, and see for yourself. See the other side of Palestine, as you say: Tel Aviv, a city where Arabs and Israelis live side by side, where homosexuals and women have 100% equal rights, where democracy abides.

Looks blasphemous, no?