Arab Mobile Communication Studies

Both sides in the Gaza war have employed cellphones as a form of psychological warfare, among other purposes — part of a trend toward using new media in a century-old conflict.

Hagar Mizrachi, a 25-year-old Israeli, recently received a text message that said rocket attacks on all of Israel's cities were imminent. The message was signed "Hamas" and the sender name was listed as "Qassam.hamm," he said. Qassams are rockets that Hamas militants have been firing from Gaza into southern Israel. "It's unnerving to receive something like that," said Mizrachi, an editor at an online news service. "It feels like they've invaded you."

Yaniv Levyatan, a psychological warfare expert at the University of Haifa, said cellphones are a natural tool since soldiers and militants are generally young and have grown up using them. Israel and Gaza are both small, densely populated areas blanketed by wireless service, making the phones' use even more effective, he said.

Levyatan said the messages from Hamas to Israeli cellphones were generally crude and not targeted very well. "The Hebrew was terrible," he said.

Palestinian phone users report receiving calls on both cellphones and land lines, encouraging them to turn in Hamas militants or warning them their home is about to be bombed, said Amman Aker, head of the Palestinian mobile phone company Jawwal, which operates in Gaza.

"We can't do anything about it," Aker said. He said the calls come in from international carriers and cannot be traced or blocked.

Israeli officials say they are doing Palestinians a service by advising them of impending attacks so civilians can get out of a building.

"We have to do what we can to warn civilians," said Maj. Jacob Dallal, an Israeli military spokesman. Dallal declined to discuss how the Israeli military obtains cellphone numbers in Gaza. Land line phone numbers here are generally available in phone books.

Jonathan Fighel, a retired Israeli colonel at the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism, based near Tel Aviv, said it's relatively simple for both sides to use cellphones and landlines to spread their message. He compared the technology to that used by telemarketers around the world, who obtain lists of phone numbers and then use computers to place automatic calls.

This isn't the first war in which cellphones have been a relevant issue for Israel. During the war in Lebanon in 2006, Israeli soldiers commonly tucked their phones into their cargo pockets when they went onto the battlefield and regularly used them to call home or keep in touch with friends.

The constant phone calls from the field became a security issue since Hezbollah militants had the capacity to listen in on conversations. "We know it was common in Lebanon that the bad guys were eavesdropping on cellphones," said Shlomo Brom, a retired Israeli brigadier general. In Gaza, soldiers have been ordered to leave their phones at their base, Dallal said.

The cellphone battles are part of an aggressive effort by both sides to use technology to shape the world's perception of the Gaza war. Except for occasional news media tours set up by the Israeli military, foreign journalists have been prevented from reporting from the battlefield.

The Israeli Defense Forces started a YouTube channel shortly after the conflict began Dec. 27. It was the brainchild of a couple of soldiers and has attracted millions of viewers, said Maj. Avital Leibovich, a military spokeswoman. The Israeli military posts videos of precision airstrikes and ground forces operating in Gaza. "We want the world to see the conflict from our point of view," Leibovich said.

YouTube allows the Israeli military to communicate directly with the audience, without the filter of traditional news media. "We don't have a mediator here," Leibovich said.

Hamas has a Web presence and has continued to operate a television station called al-Aqsa. Israel's military has occasionally cut into broadcasts of the Hamas channel to urge the population to turn against militants.

On Jan. 3, Israel's Channel 10 News aired a video it said appeared that day on al-Aqsa, featuring mug shots of Hamas leaders who had been killed and a ticking clock. "Hamas, your time is running out" flashes across the screen.

Israeli military officials have declined to discuss the reports — or whether they use phone calls for other means, such as deceiving militants.

"All I can say is we call them, especially when we're going to target a building," Dallal said.

Contributing: Daniel Estrin