Atlantic Council Ambassador-in-Residence Michael Oren writes for CNN on the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas:

The displacement, injury, and death of civilians in war is always tragic, and the current fighting between Israel and Hamas in Gaza is no exception. But unlike the vast majority of conflicts in history, Operation Protective Edge, as Israel calls it, is one in which images of civilian suffering play a central—and potentially decisive—role in the outcome.

And the reason is simple: More than a military strategy, Hamas has a media strategy. Calculatingly, Hamas employs primitive military tactics to mount a sophisticated media campaign that can threaten Israel’s basic security. And in conducting that offensive, Hamas can count on one of the world’s most powerful weapons: the international media.

Read the full article here.