You have all heard about the air assault on Gaza going on right now in an effort to shut down Hamas by the Israeli air force.

So it's no coincidence that the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) has launched its own YouTube channel to show footage of "precision bombing operations in the Gaza strip."

IDF Foreign Press Branch head Major Avital Leibovich believes that "the blogosphere and new media are another war zone [and] we have to be relevant there."

The IDF want to use outlets like YouTube to defend its military initiatives against media attacks and international criticism, as well as avert potential failure that can occur from such intense scrutiny.

With live IDF YouTube footage that some may consider too graphic and perhaps even distressing, is this just gratuitous violence being shown to the public in the name of news? Is it really necessary?

One footage allegedly show men -- after loading rockets onto a truck -- getting hit by an Israeli Air Force strike.

However, Maj. Leibovich is convinced that "the intelligent audience watching the footage will know that people killed did not have peaceful intentions toward Israel. I don't believe they'll be disturbed."

Or will it incite more violence by the opposition who see footage such as this?

Source