Israel has used the rhetoric of the Global War on Terror to justify its genocidal campaign against Palestinians, drawing parallels to the 9/11 attacks and framing itself as a blameless victim. This narrative closely mirrors the one used by the United States following 9/11, with both countries portraying terrorism as an existential threat to their freedom and way of life. By positioning themselves as victims, they have been able to legitimize their own state violence and evade accountability for their actions. Israel has capitalized on the language of the War on Terror, using it to depoliticize the actions of Hamas and portray them as driven by irrational fanaticism, while presenting its own violence as defensive and rational.
The power of this narrative lies in its ability to create and perpetuate a narrow set of “political truths” that dictate who the “terrorists” are and justify violent interventions. Both the United States and Israel have represented terrorism as a threat commensurate with Nazism and Communism, framing their brutal wars as necessary actions to protect democracy and civilization. They have emphasized the moral superiority of their own actions, while demonizing their enemies as pure evil. By doing so, they have been able to maintain their power and continue their “necropolitical” rule, dictating who lives and who dies.
It is critical to challenge and subvert these destructive narratives in order to dismantle the power structures that perpetuate violence and oppression. By exposing the constructed nature of these narratives and highlighting the underlying political motivations, it becomes possible to build a more just and equitable world.
