Israel's social media offensives -- on Twitter and on YouTube -- in the days since the start of air attacks in Gaza includes attempts that seemed aim at winning the war of public opinion on the idea that the military operation is a reasonable response to Palestinian rocket attacks and is targeted solely at Hamas properties and assets.

According to TwitterCounter, @israelconsulate went from zero followers yesterday morning to more than 1,500 at the start of today's "Citizens' Press Conference" put on by the Israeli Consulate in New York. (Fascinating fact: that likely unsustainable rate of adoption would put them on track to have 32,000 followers in a month -- on par with @StephenColbert.)

There's about a half an hour left in the two hour event, and they've responding to about fifty questions. A question from one @rafaelprince, "Such harsh, intense and merciless strike on #Gaza isn't a form of collective punishment? (4Geneva Conv, Art. 33)" prompted this defense: "Targeting Hamas installations, located w/in civilian areas. War is w/Hamas not civ." Twitter isn't proving to be a perfect medium for the Q&A, though, as the consulate's responses don't always link to the questions they're intended to reply to.

The press conference is the work of new media-savvy David Saranga, the counsel for media and public affairs at the New York consulate. An article in the Jewish Chronicle this spring does a good job covering how Saranga is "rebranding Israel" online:

"The work is open-source, and transparent — as it has to be, to engage a younger generation. We are experimenting with what works, and encouraging interaction." With over 1,000 friends on Facebook, and 600 unique visitors a day to the isRealli blog, the numbers logging on are respectable, but not massive. However, what is happening on YouTube is noteworthy. Previously, if you searched for "Israel" on the video-sharing site, the vast majority of films found would be negative or anti-Zionist. Now you are just as likely to see positive depictions of the country. These are not "propaganda" films produced by the consulate, but are user-generated content.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is also tweeting through the crisis. But that's largely in Hebrew, and I don't speak it. And there's @QassamCount -- an accounting of the Hamas rockets reportedly being sent into southern Israel. ("5:56pm: Qassam rocket lands within Sha'ar Hanegev Regional Council"..."6:31pm: 2 rockets fired at Ashdod, Ashkelon"... "7:28pm: Mortar shell hits Eshkol")

The Israel Defense Forces' Spokesperson's Unit is also running a YouTube channel with videos of precision-targeted air strikes on what is says are underground missile launch pads and "smuggling tunnels" inside Gaza.

There hasn't been much sign yet of a Palestinian social media response, though Global Voices is tracking some of the world's blogging about Gaza.

It's all rather similar to public diplomacy 2.0, the rubric used by State Department undersecretary Jamie Glassman to talk about using new media to win hearts and minds. We've been highlighting that work -- and in particular the Twitter use of State diplomat Colleen Graffy -- because it's a fascinating application of a new mindset on public engagement as applied in what can quickly turn into life-and-death situations.

UPDATE: Shaun Dakin passes along @gazanews -- an anonymous Twitterer reporting from the Palestinian perspective.