Netanyahu’s Speech to Iranian People

A critical linguistic analysis

Abstract

Language constitutes a battleground between speakers and their audiences, used as a tool for shaping realities and directing public opinion. This dynamic becomes more evident in political contexts and sensitive circumstances. In thisregard, the presentstudy analyzes the political speech delivered by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the eve of Israel’s attack on Iran, unexpectedly addressing the Iranian people. Critical linguistics is adopted as the methodologicalframework, asitprovidesmeanstouncoverthemisuse of language for various purposes, particularly political ones and their main objectives, through practical tools that link linguistic and social structures in an interactive framework. The significance of this work liesin raising awareness ofthe dangers oflanguage when camouflage techniques are employed, concealing implicit and suspicious goals that contradict explicit statements. The study addresses readers who are daily exposed to an overwhelming amount of linguistic resources, encouraging them to recognize the potentially unethical purposes underlying such discourse. Findings reveal that Netanyahu deliberately manipulated language to construct new realities and influence the target audience, employing diverse disinformation strategiesto incite the Iranian public against their regime.