Polishing Israel’s Tarnished Reputation
Asharq Al-Awsat, London, November 14
Israel’s image has absorbed profound damage as a result of its unrestrained war in Gaza, a campaign that has effectively trapped the enclave’s entire population inside a cage of conflict as a punitive gesture against the Hamas movement.
The fallout was expected in the Arab and Islamic worlds and even in Latin America – regions historically sympathetic to popular struggles against Western power structures and therefore attuned to the suffering in Gaza – but the real rupture has occurred at the core of the West: the US.
What has shifted for Israelis is the crumbling of their crafted image – the reputation of their state, the presumed righteousness of their cause, and the dominance of their narrative over competing stories from the Middle East – particularly among American and European audiences, though the American public is most consequential.
Recent surveys from the Pew Research Center show a steep decline in American sympathy for Israel, especially among younger generations. This trend is reflected in political developments such as the rise of the insurgent “socialist” New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a Shi’ite Muslim born to Indian parents whose ascent signals deeper shifts in public sentiment.
Against this backdrop, Israeli sources have disclosed that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has signed a range of advertising contracts aimed at repairing Israel’s standing with Americans through a variety of media channels, including chatbots, as reported by Haaretz last week.
The campaign has targeted botnets to amplify pro-Israel messaging online while attempting to shape search results and responses produced by major AI platforms such as ChatGPT. According to the newspaper, the largest of these contracts was finalized last August with Clock Tower X, a firm owned by Brad Parscale, the strategist behind President Trump’s digital campaigns in 2016 and 2020.
Brad Parscale’s team is committed to producing at least 100 core pieces of content per month – videos, audio segments, podcasts, graphics, and written materials – along with 5,000 derivative items, all designed to generate 50 million monthly views.
Central to Israel’s push is its effort to influence the rapidly expanding ecosystem of AI-powered chatbots – a strikingly new frontier in information warfare. Yet the reality is that such a campaign will find only limited success unless Netanyahu’s government rethinks its approach to the Palestinian issue and moves toward the very path it has resisted: genuine peace, recognition of a Palestinian state, or a reimagining of Israel as a shared state for Jews and Palestinians – a transformation that remains deeply improbable for religious, cultural, political, security, economic, and psychological reasons.
The inclusion of artificial intelligence tools in this broader propaganda effort raises an unavoidable question for the fervent believers in the supposed scientific rigor and neutrality of AI: Considering this, do you still hold such unshaken faith in the objectivity and power of these systems? – Mishary Dhayidi
The Dollarization of the Syrian Economy
Al-Ittihad, UAE, November 15
Syria’s decision to join the US-led international coalition to combat the Islamic State has made it the 90th committed partner in this campaign, marking a pivotal moment in regional cooperation.
The US embassy in Damascus called the move “an important step toward working alongside the US and partner countries in the fight against terrorism. It is part of the process of building a secure and stable Syria and will enable security cooperation and joint training, enhancing the protection of Syrians from terrorism and allowing for the restoration of stability and the strengthening of reconstruction opportunities after 14 years of devastating war.”
This development fits squarely within Syria’s new effort to break from its past, shed its longstanding reputation as a state sponsor of terrorism, and anchor itself within both the regional security framework and the international order. Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa views cooperation with the US as an opening for his country and sees the joint campaign against the Islamic State as a strategic political gateway for Syria.
At the same time, Damascus is working to secure a desirable regional role by capitalizing on neighboring states’ need for stability as a prerequisite for economic revival, as well as major powers’ need for local partners capable of managing security and safeguarding interests. This comes at a moment when Washington has spent decades reshaping regional dynamics to serve its own strategic aims.
For that reason, major American media outlets described the meeting between the Syrian and American presidents as a “historic event” that ended decades of estrangement and marked a profound shift in Syria’s place within US strategy.
The fall of the previous Syrian regime opened the door to one of the most complex economic battles the country has seen in decades. Rapid inflation, collapsing trust in the national currency, and the rise of black-market speculators, among other factors, turned the Syrian pound into a symbol of national crisis rather than a functional instrument of exchange and value.
But with the new administration taking office, restrictions on the dollar were lifted after the repeal of Decree No. 3 of 2020, which had banned its circulation under penalty of imprisonment. Dollarization quickly spread across the country, no longer confined to the private sector but extending to public institutions as well. Its impact deepened with the arrival of promised Arab and foreign investments – estimated at around $28 billion – alongside the return of Syrian investors eager to launch projects across multiple sectors.
Without question, the dollarization of the Syrian economy carries important benefits, including shielding individuals and institutions from the risks of currency depreciation and volatility, protecting against inflation, and encouraging both domestic and foreign investment. It also helps integrate the local economy into global financial systems. Yet it comes with substantial risks, especially because full dollarization undermines monetary independence and erodes confidence in the national currency, which remains a core symbol of sovereignty.
Recognizing that limited activity by existing banks is insufficient to counter dollarization and protect the lira, Central Bank Governor Abdulkader Husrieh announced a long-term strategic plan to double the number of banks operating in Syria – from 16 today to 30 by 2030 – as part of a broader effort to restructure a banking sector severely weakened by years of civil war and international sanctions. – Adnan Karima
The Ceasefire Agreement: One Year On
Nida Al Watan, Lebanon, November 15
The ceasefire agreement between Hezbollah and Israel is nearing the end of its first year, existing largely as ink on paper, with none of its provisions meaningfully implemented on the ground. Israel has not halted its military assaults nor reversed its systematic devastation of villages along its northern border, blocking reconstruction and preventing displaced residents from returning.
Hezbollah, for its part, has not honored its commitments to relinquish its arsenal, dismantle its state-within-a-state, and integrate into the Lebanese state as a national actor rather than an Iranian proxy, as required under the agreement it sought after suffering heavy losses in leadership and elite fighters.
The clauses the party proudly published on Al-Manar’s website at the time – and subsequently ignored – now stand as evidence against it, particularly its acknowledgment that UN Security Council Resolution 1701 mandates the full implementation of earlier resolutions, including the disarmament of all armed groups in Lebanon. Hezbollah also overlooks the agreement’s stipulation that “the US will push for indirect negotiations between Israel and Lebanon to reach an agreement on the demarcation of land borders.”
Criticizing the party and its conduct does not, of course, absolve Israel, which continues to behave as though it is immune from accountability, pressing ahead with assassinations and destructive strikes that spare neither civilians nor infrastructure.
Yet Israel’s aggression does not erase the fact that Hezbollah itself shares responsibility for Lebanon’s paralysis, perched atop the wreckage of its once-formidable influence and refusing to honestly examine what its reckless war has wrought – an adventure born of poor calculations and an exaggerated sense of power, as if its overriding priority were to preserve its platform and whatever dollars and smuggled weapons might keep it barely afloat.
It is increasingly apparent that both parties, entrenched in their addiction to conflict, have abandoned the agreement in pursuit of their respective strategic wish lists, showing little concern for how their actions block any chance of Lebanon’s recovery, its escape from cascading crises, or the rebuilding of a functional state capable of carrying its burdens and untangling its knots.
And while Israel’s efforts to obstruct Lebanon’s revival are unsurprising – after all, it is an adversary, and no one disputes that – Hezbollah’s behavior cannot be dismissed, especially when it frames the handover of its weapons to the state as “humiliation,” using Israel’s targeting of its fighters to justify its obstinacy and insisting that “we are in real existential danger, and we have the right to do anything to protect our existence… and any price is less than the price of surrender.”
Perhaps Hezbollah needs someone to remind it that true humiliation lies in clinging to weapons that cannot even protect its own fighters, that loyalty to a homeland is worth more than subservience to Iran, and that negotiations – however distasteful it claims they are – might secure Lebanon’s land, fortify its borders, and preserve its sovereignty; unless, for the party, pride stands in conflict with sovereignty itself. – Sana Aljak
Ronaldo: A Witness to Saudi Transformation
Al Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, November 16
At the “TOURISE 2025” summit in Riyadh, Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo appeared not merely as a football icon but as an attentive observer of the sweeping national transformation underway in Saudi Arabia – an era in which institutional, societal, economic, and legal structures have been reformed, reshaping public thinking and redefining how Saudis view themselves, their future, and their engagement with the world.
Anyone listening to Ronaldo would recognize that his remarks were authentic rather than performative, reflecting his conviction that what is unfolding in Saudi Arabia is not a fleeting experiment but a national project repositioning the kingdom within the global economy and international diplomacy while reimagining the roles of its citizens and government in advancing development and administrative, cultural, and religious reform, built first on the empowerment of Saudis and second on the contributions of experienced partners who have come to participate in the country’s ongoing evolution.
“Everyone realized I was right to move to Saudi Arabia,” Ronaldo says, adding, “I believe in the ambition and potential of the development project.” This view is rooted in his experience as part of the new Saudi environment, where he is actively engaged in shaping transformation rather than observing it from afar. His involvement in community life and his interactions with national leaders and visiting dignitaries have given him a deep understanding of the structural shifts redefining many facets of daily life.
When Ronaldo arrived in Riyadh in 2022, he confronted considerable skepticism from Western media, which dismissed his move to Al-Nassr FC as a publicity play. Today, however, his presence has become a case study in the strategic integration of sports with the economy, tourism, and culture.
In this context, Saudi athletes and global stars alike are no longer seen simply as high-paid professionals but as participants in a broader national narrative in which sports operate as an instrument of perception-building and a form of soft diplomacy, presenting a country confidently opening itself to the world.
Certainly, neither Ronaldo nor any other international athlete has come to Saudi Arabia for volunteer work; they are compensated by their clubs. Yet Ronaldo, in particular, has distinguished himself by aligning his professional journey with the broader Saudi reform agenda. While not every star has experienced this depth of engagement, Saudi achievements extend far beyond sports into art, cinema, fashion, entertainment, and esports.
“I consider myself Saudi; I am a Saudi man, and I love being here.” With this declaration, Ronaldo demonstrated an ability to connect with both his Saudi audience and a global fan base, embodying what might be called a “symbolic belonging” that lends his presence cultural weight beyond football. This is visible in images of him wearing the Saudi thobe with striking ease, as though it had long been part of his wardrobe.
When a global figure speaks the language of integration, he ceases to be a temporary guest and instead becomes part of the diverse fabric of the kingdom – an informal ambassador whose influence extends across borders, resonating clearly with audiences worldwide.
Ronaldo has also shown deep respect for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, stating, “The crown prince has worked hard to elevate the kingdom to a global level.” This is not mere courtesy but recognition that the kingdom’s transformation is the product of deliberate planning, a leadership committed to its people, and a drive to advance major national projects that serve the well-being and future of all Saudis. – Hasan Almustafa
Translated by Asaf Zilberfarb. All assertions, opinions, facts, and information presented in these articles are the sole responsibility of their respective authors and are not necessarily those of The Media Line, which assumes no responsibility for their content.