Gaza Envelope Digital Community Managers Acted as Lifelines Post-Oct 7, Study Finds

Following the October 7, 2023 attacks, which claimed some 1,200 lives and saw 251 people abducted, thousands of residents from the Gaza envelope were displaced from their homes, scattering across hotels and communities nationwide and abroad. Amid this reality, and against the backdrop of insufficient responses from state institutions and local authorities, regional WhatsApp and Facebook group administrators found themselves at a critical intersection of community support, operating entirely without prior training or guidelines.

A new study has closely examined the role of these administrators over roughly two and a half years following the assault. The research was led by Dr. Omer Kenan as principal investigator, alongside Dr. Tami Razi and Dr. Yuval Gozinsky from the Master's program specializing in digital community management at Sapir Academic College, and Osera Steinberg from Bar-Ilan University. Kenan, who has studied digital communities for years, helped establish the master's track at Sapir and manages the alumni community of the college's Department of Communication.

Digital Glue Amid Dispersal

"As someone who works in the Gaza envelope, at Sapir, I saw the reality on the ground," Dr. Kenan told mako. "A large portion of the residents were scattered all over the country, some abroad, some with friends. Some lost loved ones, others knew people who were kidnapped. We asked ourselves what the role of digital community managers is in the two and a half years following October 7, and how you manage a community whose parts are broken."

The study was based on comprehensive in-depth interviews—conducted via Zoom and lasting between an hour and an hour and a half each—with 18 regional digital community managers operating on Facebook and WhatsApp, some paid and others volunteers. The examined groups covered a wide spectrum of communities in the region of varying sizes: from long-standing settlement groups like Be'eri and Nativ HaAsara, to large regional networks such as Sderot communities, Gaza Envelope Mothers, and Sha'ar HaNegev; as well as newly formed communities like Future of the Envelope, Kumu, and various professional and sectoral forums.

Identifying Distress Without Training

The findings show that community managers effectively became frontline triage and initial assistance hubs for victims of anxiety and trauma. They developed heightened vigilance toward digital indicators—such as sharp drops or spikes in posting frequency, shifts in writing style, and expressions of despair.

"You enter a space where people are shattered," recounted Anat, manager of the Nir Yitzhak community. "I have to be a sort of social worker, a psychologist, containing tears and hearing horrifying stories."

Alongside listening, managers were careful to establish clear boundaries so as not to cross into professional therapy. To maintain group stability, charged conversations or intense displays of anger were channeled into private chats or physical meetings.

Acting as a Catalyst for Authorities

Rather than waiting for official mechanisms, managers positioned themselves as a connecting link and catalyst for public systems. Dr. Kenan notes that managers identified genuine needs among people that went unanswered by the authorities, bridging the gap between displaced residents and municipal welfare departments. The groups also served as a platform for civic initiatives, bureaucratic struggles against the Tkuma Directorate and government funds, and as a sensor for grassroots solutions.

Simultaneously, managers had to act as a defensive shield against outside entities, particularly media outlets seeking to cover the devastation within the communities, protecting residents' privacy and emotional boundaries.

The Psychological Toll and Neutrality

The study highlights that this ongoing work was carried out while the managers themselves experienced deep mourning, crisis, and trauma as survivors of the events. Maintaining a certain emotional distance allowed them to be there for others, with some noting that the role shielded them from being consumed entirely by their own suffering.

A central difficulty was the need to maintain absolute restraint and strict political neutrality to prevent communities from fracturing. Avoiding political discourse ensured the spaces remained inclusive and supportive rather than polarizing.

In conclusion, the study emphasizes that the community resilience demonstrated by these groups was not a spontaneous product of social networks, but the result of intensive cognitive, emotional, and institutional labor. The researchers recommend that the state, local authorities, and emergency systems officially recognize, train, and compensate digital community managers for the vital governance and welfare vacuum they filled.