DIGITAL DIPLOMACY AS DENIAL: ISRAEL'S STRATEGIC RESPONSE TO FAMINE ALLEGATIONS AND GENOCIDE ACCUSATIONS IN GAZA
Keywords:
Digital Diplomacy, Denial Strategy, Situational Crisis Communication Theory, Israel, Gaza Conflict
Abstract
This study examines how Israel employs digital diplomacy as a strategy of denial in response to international accusations regarding the use of starvation as a weapon of war and mass murder in Gaza. Utilizing W. Timothy Coombs' Situational Crisis Communication Theory (SCCT), the research identifies a systematic pattern of denial that includes three key strategies: attacking the accuser, outright denial, and scapegoating. Through qualitative descriptive analysis, the study reveals that Israel's digital communication acts as a coordinated crisis management mechanism, rather than a spontaneous public messaging effort. The strategy of attacking the accuser seeks to delegitimize institutions such as the International Criminal Court (ICC) by portraying them as biased or politically motivated. The denial strategy creates an alternative narrative that illustrates Gaza as being unaffected by starvation, while the scapegoating strategy shifts moral and legal responsibility onto Hamas. The findings conclude that state-led digital communication can effectively negate empirically substantiated humanitarian crises and reshape the moral narrative surrounding armed conflict.
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References
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Benvenisti, E. (2021). The International Law of Prolonged Sieges and Blockades: Gaza as a Case Study. SSRN Electronic Journal. https://doi.org/10.2139/SSRN.3855512
Bordas, M. (2024). Hamas-Israel War: A Brief Analysis of First Two Phases of War. European Scientific Journal, ESJ, 20(11), 1–1. https://doi.org/10.19044/ESJ.2024.V20N11P1
Burke, J., & Tantesh, M. A. (2025). UN-backed experts declare famine in and around Gaza City. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/aug/22/ipc-declares-famine-gaza-city
Chughtai, A. (2025). Israel starving Gaza: 440 dead from starvation, including 147 children. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/8/18/israel-starving-gaza-hundreds-of-deaths-including-many-children
Coombs, W. Timothy. (1995). Choosing the Right Words: The Development of Guidelines for the Selection of the “Appropriate” Crisis-Response Strategies. Management Communication Quarterly, 8(4), 447–476. https://doi.org/10.1177/0893318995008004003
Coombs, W. . T. (2007). Protecting Organization Reputations During a Crisis: The Development and Application of Situational Crisis Communication Theory. Corporate Reputation Review, 10(3), 163–176. https://doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.crr.1550049
Coombs, W. T. (1995). Choosing the Right Words: The Development of Guidelines for the Selection of the “Appropriate” Crisis-Response Strategies. Management Communication Quarterly, 8(4), 447–476. https://doi.org/10.1177/0893318995008004003
Coombs, W. T. (2007). Protecting Organization Reputations During a Crisis: The Development and Application of Situational Crisis Communication Theory. Corporate Reputation Review, 10(3), 163–176. https://doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.crr.1550049
Fernández Arribas, G. (2024). The ICJ Order on provisional measures of January 2024 in South Africa v. Israel on Genocide Case: An expected but disappointing decision. Editorial Uca. https://doi.org/10.25267/Paix_secur_int.2024.i12.1003
Haan, N., Hailey, P., Maxwell, D., Seal, A., Fitzpatrick, M., Jamaluddine, Z., Lopez, J., & Russo, L. (2025). Famine Review Committee: Gaza Strip, August 2025. Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) Global Support Unit. https://www.ipcinfo.org/ipc-country-analysis/details-map/en/c/1159596/
Hamamra, Bilal, Abuzant, Maysa, & Mahamid, Fayez. (2025). The Decimation of Gaza’s Health Care System—Hospitals Destroyed and Lives Endangered. International Journal of Social Determinants of Health and Health Services, 27551938251378096. https://doi.org/10.1177/27551938251378096
Hassoun, A., Parra-López, C., Ben Hassen, T., Ben Abdallah, S., Shehadeh, L., Socol, C. T., Rajeb, A., Mahdi, N., Samadhiya, A., Buheji, M., Ahmed, D., El-Temsah, Y., Khoury, M., Hassoun, A. N., Dankar, I., Althafery, O., Trif, M., & Iriqat, D. (2025). The Gaza conflict and its implications for the sustainable development goals: a comprehensive analysis. Environment, Development and Sustainability. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-025-06763-7
Hlihor, E. (2024). Public Diplomacy in Time of War. Israel’s War on Gaza Case Study. Bulletin of the Transilvania University of Braşov. Series VII: Social Sciences • Law, 17(66), 71–84. https://doi.org/10.31926/BUT.SSL.2024.17.66.1.13
Hutagalung, M., & Nurhasanah. (2025). Media Framing in the Digital Age: A Narrative Review of Sociopolitical and Cultural Impacts. Communica : Journal of Communication, 3(3 SE-Articles), 164–177. https://doi.org/10.61978/communica.v3i3.653
Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC). (2025). Famine Review Committee: Gaza Strip (August 2025). IPC Global Initiative. https://www.ipcinfo.org/fileadmin/user_upload/ipcinfo/docs/IPC_Famine_Review_Committee_Report_Gaza_Aug2025.pdf
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Martinez Plazas, L. (2024). ‘Half a truth is often a great lie.’ http://hdl.handle.net/2105/75118
Médecins Sans Frontières. (2025). Choking Gaza: MSF’s humanitarian supply activities in a context of collective torture. Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). https://www.msf.es/sites/default/files/2025-09/Informe-MSF-Choking-Gaza-ENG.pdf
Samuel, M. T. (2024). The Israel-Hamas War One Year Later: Mass Violence and Palestinian Dispossession. Middle East Policy, 31(4), 3–16. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/mepo.12792
Selján, P. (2024). The The 7 October Hamas Attack: A Preliminary Assessment of the Israeli Intelligence, Military and Policy Failures. AARMS – Academic and Applied Research in Military and Public Management Science, 23(1), 81–98. https://doi.org/10.32565/AARMS.2024.1.5
Tegeback, L. (2024). Israel’s Soft Power in the Digital Age : An Empirical Case Study of Israel’s Digital Diplomacy During the 2023/24 Israel–Hamas War: Vol. Independen. http://uu.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1863279/FULLTEXT01.pdf
The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) Report. (2025). GAZA STRIP: Famine confirmed in Gaza Governorate, projected to expand. IPC. https://www.ipcinfo.org/ipcinfo-website/countries-in-focus-archive/issue-134/en/
The Times of Israel. (2025). Israeli review disputes UN-backed Gaza famine report as biased, methodologically flawed | The. https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-review-disputes-un-backed-gaza-famine-report-as-biased-methodologically-flawed/
Verdeja, E. (2025). The Gaza Genocide in Five Crises. Journal of Genocide Research, 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1080/14623528.2025.2452707
Published
2026-02-19
How to Cite
Maulana, M. A. (2026). DIGITAL DIPLOMACY AS DENIAL: ISRAEL’S STRATEGIC RESPONSE TO FAMINE ALLEGATIONS AND GENOCIDE ACCUSATIONS IN GAZA. Indonesian Journal of International Relations, 10(1), 24-43. https://doi.org/10.32787/ijir.v10i1.805
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Copyright (c) 2026 Muhammad Alfian Maulana
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