Analyzing the Rhetoric of the Aqsa Flood War (2023-2024): A Study of Hamas' Official Discourse through Conceptual Metaphor Theory and Critical Discourse Analysis

Abstract

This research paper investigated the representation of the Aqsa Flood War (2023-2024) within the authorized discourse remarks of the Palestinian spokesman, Abu-Obaidah, by tackling the conceptual metaphor theory and the critical discourse analysis theory. All of the discourses released by Hamas over the first three months of the war were gathered and analyzed using Van Dijk’s critical discourse analysis theory and George Lakoff’s Conceptual metaphor theory. The two approaches were utilized to examine the connotation of Hamas' rambling speeches that were full of implied signification. The data were obtained from online videos of Abu-Obaidah discourses, and the transcripts were translated from the source language, Arabic, into English. The result indicated that many war themes were highlighted within the official remarks of Hamas like war rhetorical statements, war’s achievements, jihadists’ glorifications, implied / direct threats for the enemy, war justifications, and ongoing actions. Indeed, Hamas speeches project their ideologies showing the terrorism of the Israeli party and how they occupied their holy land.