REVEALING THE BRUTALITY OF WAR USING COMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS ON THE NEW YORK TIMES’
SELECTED NEWS ARTICLES ABOUT ISRAELI AIR STRIKES ON GAZA
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra
in English Letters
By
VIVIAN ARDENNISIA SAPUTRI HALIM Student Number: 184214018
DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS FACULTY OF LETTERS
UNIVERSITAS SANATA DHARMA YOGYAKARTA
2022
REVEALING THE BRUTALITY OF WAR USING COMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS ON THE NEW YORK TIMES’
SELECTED NEWS ARTICLES ABOUT ISRAELI AIR STRIKES ON GAZA
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra
in English Letters
By
VIVIAN ARDENNISIA SAPUTRI HALIM Student Number: 184214018
DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS FACULTY OF LETTERS
UNIVERSITAS SANATA DHARMA YOGYAKARTA
2022
iii
A Sarjana Sastra Undergraduate Thesis
REVEALING THE BRUTALITY OF WAR USING SELECTED NEWS ARTICLES ABOUT ISRAELI AIR
STRIKES ON GAZA
By:
VIVIAN ARDENNISIA SAPUTRI HALIM Student Number: 184214018
Approved by
Dr. Benedictus Bherman Dwijatmoko, M.A July 13, 2022 Advisor
Simon Arsa Manggala S.S., M.Hum
Co-Advisor July 13, 2022
REVEALING THE BRUTALITY OF WAR USING COMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS ON THE NEW
SELECTED NEWS ARTICLES ABOUT ISRAELI AIR STRIKES ON GAZA
By:
VIVIAN ARDENNISIA SAPUTRI HALIM Student Number: 184214018
Defended before the Board of Examiners On July 25, 2022
and Declared Acceptable
BOARD OF EXAMINERS
NAME SIGNATURE
Chairperson : Dr. Benedictus Bherman Dwijatmoko, M.A. ________________
Secretary : Simon Arsa Manggala S.S., M.Hum. ________________
Member 1 : Dalan Mehuli Perangin Angin S.S., Ph.D. ________________
Member 2 : Dr. Benedictus Bherman Dwijatmoko, M.A. ________________
Member 3 : Simon Arsa Manggala S.S., M.Hum. ________________
Yogyakarta, July 29, 2022 Faculty of Letters Universitas Sanata Dharma
Dean
Dr. Tatang Iskarna
STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY
I certify that this undergraduate thesis contains no material which has been previously submitted for the award of any other degree at any university, and that, to the best of my knowledge, this undergraduate thesis contains no material previously written by any other person except where due reference is made in the text of the undergraduate thesis
June 22, 2022
Vivian Ardennisia Saputri Halim
LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN PUBLIKASI KARYA ILMIAH UNTUK KEPENTINGAN AKADEMIS
Yang bertanda tangan di bawah ini, saya mahasiswa Universitas Sanata Dharma Nama : Vivian Ardennisia Saputri Halim
Nomor Mahasiswa : 184214018
Demi pengembangan ilmu pengetahuan, saya memberikan kepada Perpustakaan Universitas Sanata Dharma karya ilmiah saya yang berjudul
REVEALING THE BRUTALITY OF WAR USING COMPONENTIAL ANALYSIS ON THE NEW YORK TIMES’
SELECTED NEWS ARTICLES ABOUT ISRAELI AIR STRIKES ON GAZA
beserta perangkat yang deperlukan (bila ada). Dengan demikian saya memberikan kepada Perpustakaan Universitas Sanata Dharna hak untuk menyimpan, mengalihkan dalam bentuk media lain, mengelolanya dalam bentuk pangkalan data, mendistribusikan secara terbatas, dan mempublikasikannya di internet atau media lain untuk kepentingan akademis tanpa perlu meminta ijin kepada saya maupun memberikan royalti kepada saya selama tetap mencantumkan nama saya sebagai penulis.
Demikian pernyataan ini saya buat dengan sebenarnya.
Dibuat di Yogyakarta Pada tanggal 22 Juni 2022
Yang menyatakan,
Vivian Ardennisia S.H.
I FOUND THAT IT IS ONLY BY BEING A LITTLE LOST THAT YOU STUMBLE UPON
THE PATH THAT IS MEANT FOR YOU - ESCAPE FROM ALEPPO -
LIFE IS FULL OF FULFILMENTS
JUST WAIT UNTIL YOU FIND ONE
HOLD ON TO LIFE, TO STAY ON LIVING
TO WHATEVER END
For Myself and
Those Who Have Been a Part of the Journey
For a Better Self and Future
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
My sincere and utmost gratitude goes to Jesus Christ, who blesses me with strength and fills my heart with love and courage in every path I take. I would also like to thank the universe for all the good in my life.
I would like to express my deepest gratitude and appreciation to my thesis advisor, Dr. Benedictus Bherman Dwijatmoko, M.A., for his time, energy, knowledge, and advice. I truly appreciate the time you spent helping me to finish my study. Thank you for always inspiring me. I would also like to thank Simon Arsa Manggala S.S., M.Hum., as my co-advisor, for his suggestions and additional knowledge that helped me to complete this research. And last, I would never forget to express my gratitude to English Letters Department and all the lecturers for all the guidance and support throughout my study at Universitas Sanata Dharma.
To my mom, thank you for your patience, trust, and support. Thank you for believing in me and my life choices. To my loving brother, thank you for growing up together with me. To Papi, thank you for your genuine love and support. I am forever grateful to you. To Papah, thank you for your words of affirmation. Without all of you, I would never have been here finishing my study.
To my friends, thank you for your presence, support, and encouragement.
To Brigitta for listening to my rants. To Boy for your support and knowledge. To Josh for your insights. To all my closest friends in university that I cannot mention due to limited space. Last but not least, to my best supporters and distractions in Bali: Nadine, Kak Awanda, and Dhita.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TITLE PAGE ... ii
APPROVAL PAGE ... iii
ACCEPTANCE PAGE ... iv
STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY ... v
LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN PUBLIKASI KARYA ILMIAH .. vi
MOTTO PAGE ... vii
DEDICATION PAGE ... viii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ... ix
TABLE OF CONTENTS ... x
LIST OF TABLES ... xi
ABSTRACT ... xii
ABSTRAK ... xiii
CHAPTER I ... 1
A. Background of the Study ... 1
B. Problem Formulation ... 4
C. Objectives of the Study ... 4
D. Definition of Terms ... 5
CHAPTER II ... 6
A. Review of Related Studies ... 6
B. Review of Related Theories ... 8
1. Componential Analysis ... 9
2. Word Meaning ... 10
3. Lexical Categories ... 10
4. International Law on War Crimes ... 12
C. Review of Related Backgrounds ... 13
D. Theoretical Framework ... 15
CHAPTER III ... 17
A. Object of Study ... 17
B. Approach of Study ... 17
C. Method of Study ... 18
1. Data Collection ... 18
2. Data Analysis ... 19
3. Data Presentation ... 20
CHAPTER IV ... 22
A. Analysis Result ... 22
B. Discussion ... 23
1. Brutality Concepts ... 24
2. Semantic Features ... 35
CHAPTER V ... 48
REFERENCES ... 50
APPENDIX / APPENDICES ... 52
Appendix 1: News Articles about Israeli Air Strikes on Gaza in May from The New York Times ... 52
LIST OF TABLES
No. Table Page
1. Table 1: Types of Brutality Concepts 19
2. Table 2: Lexical Items 20
3. Table 3: Table of Brutality Verbs 32
4. Table 4: Semantic Features of the Verbs 33
5. Table 5: Table of Brutality Nouns 36
6. Table 6: Semantic Features of Action Nouns 37 7. Table 7: The Semantic Features of Sufferer Nouns 39 8. Table 8: The Semantic Features of Instrument Nouns 41 9. Table 9: The Semantic Features of Other Nouns 42
10. Table 10: Table of Brutality Adjectives 43
11. Table 11: The Semantic Features of Adjectives 43
ABSTRACT
HALIM, VIVIAN A. SAPUTRI. (2022). Revealing the Brutality of War Using Componential Analysis on The New York Times’ Selected News Articles about Israeli Air Strikes on Gaza. Yogyakarta: Department of English Letters, Faculty of Letters, Universitas Sanata Dharma.
There have always been wars in recorded history that have proven to cause destruction to the world and humanity. Revealing the brutality of war is the main interest of the study in purpose to raise awareness on humanity, the war between Israel and Palestine, and other wars. The hypothesis of the study is that war is brutal.
Componential analysis is a text analysis focuses at discovering and determining the basic components of words which later reveal the meaning of the words. This approach is utilized in this research to analyze the data to prove the hypothesis. Semantics is the study of meaning under the branch of linguistics.
Words share certain features that help language speakers recognize a sense of meaning. Semantic features are basic components shared by words. For example, the word dog and cat belong to the same feature animal. Therefore, the semantic features of dog can be described as [+ Animal] and [– Human].
This research studies the semantic features of lexical categories in The New York Times news articles about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in May 2021. The articles are entitled “Israel carried out its deadliest strike yet, as the fighting raged on,” “Israel’s attack on a press building in Gaza draws condemnations,” and “The Toll of Eight Days of Conflict in Gaza and Israel.” The New York Times is selected as it is a prominent newspaper in the United States and in favor of the oppressed with the political spectrum leaning left. The articles are selected because they are published during the rising Palestinian-Israeli conflict between May 10th - 17th, 2021, reported, and discussed it.
This research has two objectives: to identify the brutality concepts of war in The New York Times news articles and to identify the semantic features used to present the brutality of war. The theories of semantics, lexical categories, componential analysis, and international law on war crimes are applied in this research to achieve the objectives. The method applied in this research is qualitative research conducted through research data. The data are in the form of words and sentences that show the brutality of war. The data are processed by determining the meanings of each word and identifying the semantic features they belong to.
The result of the study presents the brutality concepts into five concepts: the killing of people, the destroying of buildings/facilities, the use of deadly weapons, the duration of attacks, and the expression of communication. The semantic features used to present the brutality of war are developed from the brutality concepts. They are death, object animacy, instrument, damage/destruction, activity, suffering, discharging, moving, and sense of pain. These features reveal the brutal disadvantages that come as result of war. In line with the hypothesis, it can be concluded that war is brutal and unkind.
Keywords: semantics, semantic features, componential analysis, war, brutality
ABSTRAK
HALIM, VIVIAN A. SAPUTRI. (2022). Revealing the Brutality of War Using Componential Analysis on The New York Times’ Selected News Articles about Israeli Air Strikes on Gaza. Yogyakarta: Program Studi Sastra Inggris, Fakultas Sastra, Universitas Sanata Dharma.
Perang dunia yang tercatat dalam sejarah membuktikan bahwa perang menyebabkan kehancuran bagi dunia dan umat manusia. Tujuan utama penelitian ini adalah menungkap kebrutalan perang untuk meningkatkan kesadaran akan rasa kemanusiaan, perang antara Israel dan Palestina, dan perang lainnya. Hipotesis penelitian ini adalah bahwa perang itu brutal.
Analisis komponen adalah analisis teks yang berfokus pada menemukan dan menentukan komponen dasar kata yang kemudian mengungkapkan makna kata tersebut. Pendekatan ini digunakan untuk menganalisis data guna membuktikan hipotesis. Semantik adalah cabang linguistik yang mempelajari makna dalam bahasa. Fitur semantik adalah komponen dasar yang dimiliki oleh kata-kata.
Misalnya, kata anjing dan kucing termasuk dalam fitur “hewan”. Oleh karena itu, fitur semantik anjing dapat digambarkan sebagai (+ hewan) dan (– manusia).
Penelitian ini mempelajari fitur semantik dalam artikel berita The New York Times tentang konflik Israel-Palestina pada bulan Mei 2021. Artikel tersebut berjudul “Israel carried out its deadliest strike yet, as the fighting raged on,”
“Israel’s attack on a press building in Gaza draws condemnations,” dan “The Toll of Eight Days of Conflict in Gaza and Israel”. The New York Times dipilih karena merupakan surat kabar terkemuka di Amerika Serikat dan mendukung kaum tertindas dengan spektrum politik yang condong ke kiri. Artikel-artikel tersebut dipilih karena diterbitkan pada saat meningkatnya konflik Palestina-Israel antara 10 - 17 Mei 2021.
Penelitian ini memiliki dua tujuan: mengidentifikasi konsep kebrutalan perang dalam artikel berita The New York Times dan mengidentifikasi fitur semantik yang digunakan untuk memperlihatkan kebrutalan perang. Teori semantik, kategori leksikal, analisis komponen, dan hukum internasional tentang kejahatan perang diterapkan dalam penelitian ini. Metode yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah penelitian kualitatif yang dilakukan melalui data penelitian.
Data penelitian berupa kata-kata dan kalimat yang menunjukkan kebrutalan perang.
Hasil penelitian membagi konsep kebrutalan menjadi lima konsep:
pembunuhan orang, perusakan bangunan/fasilitas, penggunaan senjata mematikan, durasi serangan, dan ekspresi komunikasi. Fitur semantik yang digunakan untuk menunjukkan kebrutalan perang dikembangkan dari konsep kebrutalan, yaitu kematian, animasi objek, instrumen, kerusakan / kehancuran, aktivitas, penderitaan, pemakaian, bergerak, dan rasa sakit. Fitur-fitur ini mengungkapkan kerugian brutal yang datang sebagai akibat dari perang. Sejalan dengan hipotesis, dapat disimpulkan bahwa perang itu brutal dan tidak baik.
Kata Kunci: semantik, fitur semantik, analisis komponensial, perang, kekejaman
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
A. Background of the Study
This study aims to discover the brutality concepts of war. The brutality of war can be defined as the violent or very cruel acts performed during war which often cause destruction. Hence why war is often perceived as destructive. The brutality concepts are found out by analyzing news articles from The New York Times about the Israeli-Palestinian war, particularly on the event of Israeli air strikes on Gaza in May 2021. This study applies componential analysis as the main approach of the study alongside with international laws or conventions on war crimes.
Componential analysis is a language approach to analyze the basic components (semantic features) of word meaning (Yule, 2020, p.132). This statement is supported by Nida’s definition of componential analysis which is “a part of text analysis which aims at discovering and organizing the semantic components of the words.” These semantic features or components are certain features or components shared by words that belong to the same concept associated with the word itself.
Semantic features can be used to analyze how words in a language are (or are not) connected (Yule, 2020, p.131). For example, dog has the feature [+ Canine], and cat has [– Canine]. These features work as basic components of meaning.
Therefore, the approach to analyzing word connections with semantic features is called componential analysis.
The study of the meaning of words, phrases, and sentences is called semantics (Yule, 2020, p.129). Semantics is utilized in this research by studying words and sentences in the selected news articles to understand their meaning and how the words connect to each other. The meanings can reveal what sense of idea they belong to. In this research, the meanings are hoped to reveal the brutality of war.
Yule (2020, p. 129) states that semantic analysis focuses on what the words conventionally mean rather than what an individual speaker intends to mean. There are two distinctions of meanings: referential meaning and associative meaning.
Referential meaning refers to the type of meaning that can be found in dictionaries.
It is the literal meaning of a word. In comparison, associative meaning refers to the type of meaning that conveys feelings or reactions to words experienced by specific individuals. For example, the word knife has basic components like “thin, sharp, cutting instrument” described from the literal meaning. This is called referential meaning. However, each individual might perceive the word knife with different associations like “cook” (kitchen tool) or “murder” (weapon). This is called associative or emotive meaning.
This study applies Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols as the basis of brutality concepts. The Geneva Conventions of 1949 are international treaties that contain the most important rules limiting the barbarity of war (ICRC, 2020). They protect people who are not involved in the fighting and those who are no longer able to fight, wounded, and sick. The researcher uses the componential analysis by Yule (2020) and Nida’s theory of componential analysis (1975) to analyze how words in a language are connected and reveal how they show the
brutality of war by identifying the semantic features. Therefore, componential analysis is an appropriate language approach for this study.
In the modern digital era, it is easy to access all the information of what is happening around our life and the world through language and media. Language and media make us aware of our world. However, this is often taken advantage of by the media itself. News and entertainment in the media are considered a tool to sell particular messages and views. Croteau & Hoynes (2019, p. 160) argue that news media sells products, ideas, personalities, views, ideas, and cultural values.
They seek public acceptance and gain public acceptance from their products and values.
While media can be considered a tool to shape public opinion, it can also be a tool to spread awareness of what is happening around the world. It helps the world to understand that there is something else happening out there. It varies from positive news to news about unfortunate events, conflicts, sufferings, and disasters.
Without media, people who suffer under certain circumstances have their voices heard a little less than with the help of media.
The process of taking information in the brain happens with the help of language. We are able to understand, imagine and feel the situation explained in words. When people read or hear something, their brains first perceive the words and then interpret them by understanding the context and meaning. This is called language processing. It refers to the way humans use words to communicate ideas and feelings and how such communications are processed and understood (Seidenberg & Petitto, 1987, p.116). It is a unique trait of the human species.
This research focuses on how war can be cruel and brutal without considering the disadvantages and the damages that come within. During the war, crimes against humanity are often committed by violating human rights. This is especially applied when the crimes are directed at civilian populations. Therefore, this research wants to prove the claim and reveal the brutality of war for the purpose of raising awareness.
B. Problem Formulation
Based on the background of the study, the following problems can be formulated for the present research:
1. What brutality concepts are presented in the news articles about Israeli airstrike on Gaza?
2. What semantic features are used to present the brutality of war in the selected news articles?
C. Objectives of the Study
News media spread awareness and information about countries that are involved in armed conflicts or wars. This research studies the news articles about the war between Palestine and Israel published by The New York Times to reveal how brutal war is. The brutality of war can be seen through the language used to inform individuals about the war. As this is language research, the researcher analyzes the problems through linguistics aspects. Therefore, the present research aims to explain how the words reveal brutality using the componential analysis by Yule (2020) and Nida (1975).
In line with the problem formulation, the researcher aims to identify the brutality concepts of war seen through the news articles about Israeli airstrike on Gaza. The consideration of the brutality is based on international law and societal norms on war crimes. The researcher analyzes the lexical items using the componential analysis. The words used by the news media reflect the concepts of meaning as each word is connected to the others.
D. Definition of Terms
In this research, four concepts need to be defined in order to guide the progress and the readers in following this study. First, Brutality can be defined as a cruel and violent act or behavior (Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, 2015, p. 185).
It is a state where the action is usually against morals. The second term is Semantic Features. It is a set of basic elements or components of meaning which are connected to other words under the same concept (Yule, 2020, p.131). Some examples of semantic features are the words dog, fox, wolf which belong to the feature canine. The researcher analyzes the features by marking each word with the symbol (+), (–) or (±) to indicate inclusion, exclusion, and two possible values. For example, the word dog belongs (+) to the feature [canine]. It does not belong (–) to the feature [human].
The last term is Componential Analysis. It is an approach to analyze the basic components (semantic features) of word meaning (Yule, 2020, p.132). Yule states that the approach views words in a language as some sort of containers that carry meaning components (2020, p.132).
CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF LITERATURE
This chapter organizes reviews of studies related to the present research. It will be followed with reviews of related theories, where concepts and variables relevant to these present studies will be discussed. Then review of related background will be discussed as it is necessary to review the historical background. Finally, there will be a presentation of the theoretical framework for this study.
A. Review of Related Studies
The first related study is entitled American Journal of Educational Research entitled Nominative Features of Weapon Terms in English. Van Nam (2020) conducted a study to understand ways of naming weapons and semantics of weapon terms in English by investigating nominative features attached to weapon terms.
The study found 20 distinctive nominative features used to name 907 weapon terms.
The result also showed that there are different ways to name weapons in English and that there is a tendency to use the features purpose/function, component, maneuverability, manner, and assignment/equipment to give specific names. This study focuses more on the nominative features of weapon terms, while the current undergraduate thesis focuses on the lexical categories of words that show brutality.
The second study also focuses on semantic features. It is entitled Structural and Semantic Features of the English and Uzbek Phraseological Units of Military Discourse. Ikromovna (2022) investigated the structural components of the phraseological units of military discourse and the semantic meanings by applying componential analysis, classification, and comparative analysis. The result shows
that phraseological units of military subjects are used for military service, hostilities and violent phenomena, military equipment, ranks, and lives of military personnel.
While the semantic features are divided into military objects, military actions, and military processes. This study uses two approaches: componential analysis and classification and comparative analysis, while the current undergraduate thesis only focuses on the componential analysis approach.
The third study is taken from an undergraduate thesis by Christiana (2018) entitled The Componential and Contextual Analysis of Lexemes Meaning to Hit in Crime News Articles. The study aims to clarify and help language users to define and perceive the contrast among synonymous lexemes meaning to hit rightly.
Christiana adopted Componential Analysis by identifying the common, supplementary, and diagnostic features. The study found that there are 13 lexemes meaning to hit. The analysis also found 12 distinctive features that belong to 3 semantic domains: agent, manner, and effect. This study uses both componential and contextual analysis, while the current undergraduate thesis only focuses on the componential analysis approach.
The fourth study is an undergraduate thesis written by Fita Chyntia (2022) entitled Componential Analysis of Covid-19 Related Terms on Google Scholar Articles. The objective of the study is to identify the semantic features of Covid-19 related terms and how the terms are used in the articles according to the meaning properties using Componential Analysis. The study found that the semantic features of each term give precise descriptions of the meaning and distinguish the meaning of one term from another in the same domain. Both studies use componential
analysis as the approach of the study with a difference in the object of study. The current study hopes to give more insights and perspectives on the topic.
The fifth study is an undergraduate thesis written by Ilham Fathur Rahman (2011) entitled An Analysis of Semantic Field on Health Text of the Jakarta Post Newspaper. This study aims to classify lexemes in the construction of semantic fields and to describe components of meaning in the lexemes. The study found six semantic fields: medical treatment, liquid of body, medical center, chronic illnesses, healthy occupation, and medicine. The analysis shows that many lexemes have relation to each other from synonym and class inclusion. Both of the studies have similarities in the approach. However, the current study focuses more on explaining how the semantic features reveal an idea (brutality), while Rahman (2011) only aims to classify the lexemes and describe the components of meaning.
Semantics study still needs to be conducted, especially with the Componential Analysis approach. Such a study may reveal how each word is related in terms of meaning. The current study expects to give more insights and perspectives on the topic. Overall, there should be more study of war within linguistics scope to raise awareness to the world.
B. Review of Related Theories
This part provides the theories that strengthen this study. The theory of Word Meaning, the theory of Lexical Categories, and the theory of Componential Analysis, and the international law on war crimes are presented to inform which concept of each theory is used in analyzing the data and discussing the findings.
1. Componential Analysis
Nida (1975, p.229) defines componential analysis as a part of text analysis
“which aims at discovering and organizing the semantic components of the words.”
This study uses componential analysis to find the connection or relation between each word and how it reveals the sense of brutality. Using componential analysis, the sense of brutality is revealed by defining a word and determining what set it belongs to and how it differs from other words of the same set. In Linguistics, this set of words that are related to each other under the same concept is called semantic features. For example, [+ Animal] is the semantic feature shared by all members of the set (dog, elephant, bird, fox, tiger), but it is not shared by words like boy, girl, woman, man. Instead, these words belong to the semantic feature [+ Human].
Determining such features is called componential analysis (Kreidler, 2002, p.87- 88).
Nida (1975, p.30) presents the analysis of componential features into three types of components. They are common (+), diagnostic (–), and supplementary (±).
There should be contrasts to determine the linguistic meaning of a word. If they all have the same features, then the features do not differentiate them. Common component indicates kinship terms in the sense of meaning concerning other words that share certain aspects of meaning in the same semantic domain (Nida, 1975, p.33). In contrast, the diagnostic component differs from one meaning to another (Nida, 1975, p. 229). Lastly, Nida (1975) explains that a supplementary component is usually present in the meaning of a term but not required to differ it from other
meanings in a certain set (p.233). It can be supplementary for one set of meanings and become diagnostic with other sets.
2. Word Meaning
Word meaning can be understood as a definition of words. In linguistics, the branch that focuses on the study of word meaning is called semantics. It has been applied to analyze words, phrases, and sentences, focusing on the conventional meaning without considering the context. Throughout the year, semantics study is broadly used and developed.
Semantics analysis is “concerned with linguistic meaning that is shared by all competent users of the language. Doing semantics is attempting to spell out what it is we all know when we behave as if we share knowledge of the meaning of a word, a phrase, or a sentence in a language” (Yule, 2020, p.129). However, the study of meaning can be complicated when a single meaning of a word or phrase may include a vast range of referents or objects to which such a form may refer (Nida, 1975, p.13).
This theory is used to analyze the brutality of war from news articles about the war between Israel and Palestine. There is news that reveals both sides for violating international laws on war crimes. By doing a semantics study, this research examines the meaning of the words that show brutality and how they connect to each other to construe meaning.
3. Lexical Categories
Lexical categories belong to part of speech or are also known as a syntactic category or word class. Parts of speech describe basic grammatical components,
which include nouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs, and prepositions. Carnie (2013, p.52) categorizes parts of speech into two distinctions: open (lexical) and closed (functional). Some parts of speech that are able to form new words are called open class or lexical. The categories of lexical parts of speech are nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs. While lexical provides the content of the sentence, functional parts of speech provide grammatical information. Functional categories include determiners, prepositions, complementizers, conjunctions, negation, auxiliaries, and modals.
Yule (2020, p.94) explains the definition of each part of speech below.
a. Verbs
Verbs are words used to refer actions and states involving people and things in situations. Verbs are what an agent (do-er) is doing. The examples of action verbs are go, walk, hit, throw. State verbs include be and have. An example in a sentence would be Lauren has unlimited energy therefore she goes to party every night.
b. Nouns
Nouns are words used to refer to people (man, woman, human), objects (book, chair, hat), creatures (dog, bird, snake), places (hospital, house, school), qualities (beauty, courage, honesty), phenomena (earthquake, gravity, snow) and abstract ideas (love, wisdom, sacrifice). These are considered as things. Usually, proper nouns are identified with a capital letter like Lauren, Indonesia, English.
c. Adjectives
Adjectives are words used to provide more information about the things (nouns) referred to. Usually, adjectives modify nouns in a noun phrase. Adjectives
can be quality (perfect), size (small) shape (round), duration (weeklong), feeling (sad), numerals (one) and more about the things.
4. International Law on War Crimes
There are international laws on war crimes that are recognized between countries. According to international humanitarian law, attacking or targeting civilians is acknowledged as a war crime (ICRC, 2014). International humanitarian law consists of treaties and customary international law. However, the core of international humanitarian law is the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their additional protocols. It regulates the manner of armed conflict and limits the effect of war on those who are not taking part in the hostilities (ICRC, 2010).
The 1949 Geneva Conventions protect people who are not directly involved in the war and do not participate in the fighting. It also applies to those who are no longer able to fight. According to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC, 2010), there are four Geneva Conventions. The first Geneva Convention focuses its protection on those who are wounded and sick. Not only soldiers but also medical units. The second Geneva Convention is specifically formed for war at sea. It regulates the protection of military personnel who are wounded, sick, and shipwrecked. It also protects hospital ships. The third Convention states that prisoners of war shall be released and repatriated without delay. Lastly, the fourth Geneva Convention protects civilians, including those in occupied territory. There are additional protocols to the Geneva Conventions on international and non- international conflicts and additional distinctive emblems.
International humanitarian law is established based on the 1949 Geneva Conventions and other treaties. From the International Committee of the Red Cross database, IHL is categorized by rule into five categories. They are the principle of distinction, specifically protected persons and objects, specific methods of warfare, weapons, treatment of civilians and persons hors de combat, and implementation.
The United Nation Security Council recognizes six crimes against children during armed conflict as Six Grave Violations. They are (1) killing or maiming of children, (2) recruiting or using child soldiers, (3) attacks against schools or hospitals,(4) rape or other grave sexual violence against children, (5) abduction of children, and (6) denial of humanitarian access for children. The law is recognized and written in the 4th Geneva Convention (1949) & its Additional Protocols (1977), Convention on the Rights of Child (1989), and Customary International Humanitarian Law. It is also stated in paragraphs 4 and 5 of the 1974 UN Declaration on the Protection of Women and Children in Emergency and Armed Conflict.
This study uses international laws on armed conflict as a basis to understand what laws can be violated during the war between Israeli-Palestinian reported in The New York Times news articles. These violations of law are applied to identify the brutality concepts of war.
C. Review of Related Backgrounds
The Jewish settlement in the Palestinian land is in itself a living manifestation of negating forces ranging from the Ottoman Empire and European powers. Both have been recorded to put the Jews in the marginal line that induced the migration
of the Jews to Palestine. Nevertheless, it was only through the auspices of the UK’s advocacy that accepted Zionism that the great exodus of the Jews to the land of the Arabic sphere embarked.
The Eastern Mediterranean land was laid open for the rising Ottoman armies after the battle of Marj Dabiq in 1516. The Ottoman armies entered Jerusalem and led it for over 400 years, which can be counted as the most extended Palestinian history. In 1887, Palestine was divided into three districts or Sanjaks: Jerusalem, Nablus, and Acre. Jerusalem was considered important in the Ottoman eyes because of its religious and historical significance, and it would be governed directly by Constantinople.
The vast majority of the population was Sunni Muslim, followed by 10 percent of Palestinian Christians, while Jewish Palestinians, estimated at around 25,000, mainly settled in Jerusalem, Hebron, Safad, and Tiberius. The population of these districts nearly reached 600,000. Numerous religious groups in Palestine lived alongside, stable, and peaceful due to a millennium of coexistence and shared adversity.
However, there were times of hardship and war at some point. By the end of the glory of the Ottoman Empire, the relations between the various ethnic groups and communities would tatter within the arrival of European-style nationalism and the weakening of the Ottoman state. The empire eventually collapsed after its fall in the first World War. During the final decades of the downfall, an Austro- Hungarian intellectual, Theodor Herzl, formed a new political movement to establish a Jewish homeland.
Nevertheless, once the Ottoman was overthrown, the land of Palestine became part of the United Kingdom’s territory, and the UK supported the new movement, Zionism. Thus, marking the great exodus of Jewish.
The first Zionist Congress was assembled in Basel, Switzerland, in August 1897 by Theodor Herzl with the agenda to call to establish a Jewish state in Palestine. From there, they started coordinating the settlement of Zionists. Herzl believes it would constitute a “solution for the Jewish question” and emancipate the Jewish people from persecution. Since then, Israeli and Palestinian conflicts have risen. What is happening between Israel and Palestine is a native population resisting settler-colonialism and ethnic cleansing.
To this day, the war between Israel and Palestine is still happening. The fighting from Palestine is led by Hamas, a military organization established to liberate Palestine from Israeli settler colonialism. This study focuses on the fighting between 10 May to 17 May.
D. Theoretical Framework
The study consists of two formulated problems. The first problem is identifying the brutality concepts of war in The New York Times articles about Israeli air strikes on Gaza. The second problem is identifying the semantic features used to present the brutality of the Israeli-Palestinian War in the selected news articles using componential analysis.
In this study, the researcher uses one leading theory, which is the theory of Word Meaning (Semantic Study). According to Yule (2020, p.129), semantics is the study of the meaning of words, phrases, and sentences. This study analyzes the
lexical categories (verbs, nouns, and adjectives) in the news articles that show a sense of brutality. This study applies Nida’s (1975) theory of componential analysis of meaning as the approach of the study. This theory is applied to analyze the two formulated problems by defining the words and determining the semantic features of the words. The researcher follows Nida’s (1975) procedures in the analysis:
naming, paraphrasing, defining, and classifying the words into the semantic features into three components: common, diagnostic, supplementary.
The international law on war crimes is used to understand the violations conducted during the war. It becomes the basis of understanding the brutality concepts of war. This study follows the 1949 of Geneva Conventions and the International Humanitarian Law.
CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY
This chapter describes the object or data of the study and approached used in analyzing the news on Israeli air strikes on Gaza. This chapter also explains the procedure of the study is conducted and how the data is collected and analyzed.
A. Object of Study
The data used for the research are in the form of words, phrases, and sentences.
The source of the data is three news articles about Israeli air strikes on Gaza from American news media, The New York Times. They are entitled “Israel carried out its deadliest strike yet, as the fighting raged on,” “Israel’s attack on a press building in Gaza draws condemnations,” and “The Toll of Eight Days of Conflict in Gaza and Israel.” The data are phrases, sentences, and lexical items, which were categorized into verbs, nouns, and adjectives. The data were taken based on its indication of brutality. Based on the problem formulation, this research focused on the brutality concepts of war presented in the news articles and the words which revealed that war is very cruel and wicked.
B. Approach of Study
In this study, the researcher applied the theory of semantics as the leading theory to study the meaning of words that show the brutality of war in The New York Times news articles on Israeli air strikes on Gaza. The theory of componential analysis was applied as the approach of study. The analysis was conducted by defining a word and determining the semantic features of the words, which later revealed the brutality of war. The linguistic procedure in using this approach
consists of four types: naming, paraphrasing, defining, and classifying. Kreidler (2002, p. 89) states that the advantage of componential analysis is “that it reflects the system through which lexemes have their respective senses. To tell what something requires us to tell what it is not, what it contrasts with, and what feature or features make the contrast possible.”
C. Method of Study
The researcher conducted a textual analysis research. The method of this study is divided into two parts. The first part is data collection, where the researcher discusses how the data were collected and the second part is data analysis, where the researcher discusses how the data were analyzed.
1. Data Collection
This study is a qualitative research conducted through a population study.
According to Shukla (2020), population refers to the set or group of all the units on which the findings of the research are to be applied. The researcher collected the data from three news articles from The New York Times. The data collected by the researcher are sentences and words which show brutality in the selected news articles. There were two sets of steps for the data collection. The first was to collect data for the first research problem, and the second was to collect data for the second research problem.
In collecting the first data, the researcher read the three news articles from The New York Times with the purpose of finding some indications of cruelty or brutality.
Therefore, in order to do that, the researcher read the articles by identifying the cruelty and violent acts or behavior that happened during the war. Firstly, the
researcher focused on each paragraph and determined which one exhibited an act of cruelty and violence with the understanding of the humanitarian law on war crimes and violations. From this step, the researcher acquired rough data on brutality acts in the form of paragraphs. These paragraphs were then classified into a category they belong to. The categories are recognized as concepts in this study.
This step was used to collect the data to answer the first research problem.
The researcher has other steps in collecting the second data to answer the second problem. Similar to the first data collection, the researcher read the three news articles and identified the indications of cruelty and violations. However, in this step, the researcher focused on words that have brutality meaning and how they connect. The steps included observing the words, highlighting the words that indicate brutality, and classifying them into their lexical category.
2. Data Analysis
This research has two research problems, with a set of data for each problem.
The researcher analyzed the first data with the following steps. The first formulated problem identifies the brutality concepts of war seen through the war between Israel and Palestine on the news about Israeli air strikes on Gaza. After the data were collected and categorized, the researcher analyzed the sentences within the selected paragraphs by applying international law or convention on war crimes to see whether there are any violations and how they present a sense of brutality. This step revealed how the concepts are considered brutal and against humanity.
The second formulated problem identifies the semantic features of the selected lexical items that show brutality. After the data were collected and categorized, the
researcher analyzed the semantic features of the words by utilizing the componential analysis by Nida (1975). Componential analysis works by defining and separating words into different components or features. The semantic features were gathered and developed from the brutality concepts. Then the features were studied by determining whether each word is common (+), diagnostic (–), or supplementary (±) to the feature. This step revealed a sense of brutality from the meanings and the features.
3. Data Presentation
The data are presented in the discussion using tables and text quotations. In the first research problem, the researcher used in-text quotations to present the sentences within a paragraph. The example of the format and the explanation are presented below.
(1) The Israeli bombing in Gaza City killed at least 33 people, including 12 women and eight children, and wounded 50 others, according to Palestinian health authorities. (1/2/1)
The words are highlighted in italic to point out the brutality. It also shows why it is included in that particular concept. For example, we can see in (1) that the keyword killed is used to explain an act of killing in the Israeli bombing. Therefore, this sentence belongs to the brutality concept of the killing of people.
Behind every quoted text presented in the discussion is a number to identify the data. The format of the number is (1/2/3). The first number tells which article the sentence belongs to. There are three news articles used in this research: (1) Israel carried out its deadliest strike yet, as the fighting raged on, (2) Israel’s attack on a press building in Gaza draws condemnations, and (3) The Toll of Eight Days of
Conflict in Gaza and Israel. The second number tells the order of the paragraphs in each article. The number 1 refers to the first paragraph, and the number 2 means the second paragraph, and so on. The last number identifies the order of the sentence in each paragraph. Therefore, in complete order, the number (1/2/3) tells that the data is the third sentence of the second paragraph located in the first article.
In the second research problem, the researcher used two different tables to present the occurrences of the lexical items and the semantic features of the words found in each lexical category. The table presented below shows the lexical items, occurrences, and percentage of the data occurrences.
The table of semantic features of each lexical category is presented below.
Under the feature columns are written symbols such as (–), (+), and (±). According to Nida (1975, p.30), the symbols are referred as common (+), diagnostic (–), and supplementary (±). In other words, the symbol (+) indicates inclusion, (–) indicates exclusion and (±) indicates two possible values. For example, the words dog have the features [+ Canine] and [– Feline].
CHAPTER IV
ANALYSIS RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
This chapter contains findings and discussion to answer the problem formulation written in chapter 1. The analysis results and discussions chapter is divided into two main parts: analysis result and discussion. In the analysis result, the researcher illustrates the data found in the news articles. The section is needed to give an overview to the readers of the result of the study and to show that the data have been analyzed thoroughly. The analysis result also show the answers to the research questions thoroughly. It is hoped that readers can see the answers to the questions by seeing the table. In the discussion, the researcher explains the analysis results based on the findings with a detailed explanation.
A. Analysis Result
There are two research problems written in chapter 1. The first problem is finding out about the types of brutality in the selected news about Israeli air strikes on Gaza. The researcher finds a total of 50 brutality notions that are categorized into five types: the killing of people, the destroying of buildings/facilities, the use of deadly weapons, the duration of attacks, and the expression of communication.
In table 1, the occurrences show the total sentences that discuss each type of brutality in the news articles. While the percentage shows the most dominant type of brutality concepts.
Table 1: Types of Brutality Concepts
No. Types of Brutality Occurrences Percentage
(%) 1. The Destroying of Buildings/Facilities 14 28
2. The Use of Deadly Weapons 13 26
3. The Killing of People 11 22
4. The Duration of Attacks 6 12
5. The Expression of Communication 6 12
Total 50 100
The second problem is to find out what lexical items are used to present the brutality concepts in the selected news about Israeli air strikes on Gaza. The researcher finds a total of 179 lexical items which show brutality. The lexical items analyzed are nouns, verbs, and adjectives. In table 2, the occurrences show the total words that indicate brutality in the news articles. While the percentage shows the most used lexical item.
Table 2: Lexical Items
No. Lexical Items Occurrences Percentage
(%)
1. Nouns 95 59.0
2. Verbs 59 36.6
3. Adjectives 7 4.3
Total 161 100
The types of brutality and lexical items will be discussed in section B below.
B. Discussion
This part includes the findings and discussion based on the data analysis. In the discussion, the researcher will answer the problem formulation constructed in chapter 1. This part has two parts of analysis. The first part discusses about the first
problem: the brutality concepts, While the second part concerns about the lexical items used to present the brutality concepts.
1. Brutality Concepts
The researcher analyzes the selected news articles to find out the brutality concepts of war. The concepts of brutality are categorized into five types: the killing of people, the destroying of buildings/facilities, the use of deadly weapons, the duration of attacks, and the expression of communication. These concepts are related to brutality as the acts of killing, destroying, weaponizing, and attacking cause damages and disadvantages, even deaths. These acts are performed at people, including innocent civilians. They are cruel and considered morally wrong. The researcher uses the recognized international law or convention on war crimes to support the analysis.
a. The Killing of People
The study finds 11 paragraphs informing the deaths or casualties caused by Israeli and Palestinian's strikes. It shows that war is very cruel as it sacrifices the lives of innocent people.
It is seen that the information on Palestinians' casualties in the news articles from The New York Times highlights children or women casualties. It is possible that the emphasis on children's casualties can be a magnet for readers' sympathy, showing an indication that Israeli air strikes are directed at civilians and brutally ignore the innocents. There is an assumption that people are able to feel more compassion when it comes to children's casualties as the victims of war. It is
possible that the purpose of emphasizing children's casualties is to stir people's consciences.
(1) The Israeli bombing in Gaza City killed at least 33 people, including 12 women and eight children, and wounded 50 others, according to Palestinian health authorities. (1/2/1)
(2) At least 197 people — most of them civilians, including 58 children — have been killed by Israeli planes, drones and artillery since the campaign began on Monday, Palestinian officials said. (1/6/1)
(3) But the strikes have killed at least 212 people, including at least 61 children, according to local health authorities, drawing international condemnation.
(3/5/2)
The concept of killing people, especially children and women, illustrates that war is very brutal. Children who have only lived for a short time suffer from an armed conflict between two countries. They are not able to live a decent life when all they can think about is whether there will be another attack. Children, women, and civilians in war countries suffer from many things: atrocities, terrible living conditions, the loss of loved ones, physical and mental illness, and lack of education.
The United Nation Security Council recognizes six crimes against children during armed conflict as Six Grave Violations. One of the violations is killing or maiming. The act of killing or injuring a child is prohibited and considered a war crime. The law is recognized and written in the 4th Geneva Convention (1949) &
its Additional Protocols (1977), Convention on the Rights of Child (1989), and Customary International Humanitarian Law. It is also stated in paragraphs 4 and 5 of the 1974 UN Declaration on the Protection of Women and Children in Emergency and Armed Conflict that:
(4) All the necessary steps shall be taken to ensure the prohibition of measures such as persecution, torture, punitive measures, degrading treatment and violence, particularly against that part of the civilian population that consists of women and children.
(5) All forms of repression and cruel and inhuman treatment of women and children, including imprisonment, torture, shooting, mass arrests, collective punishment, destruction of dwellings and forcible eviction, committed by belligerents in the course of military operations or in occupied territories shall be considered criminal.
There are rules of war recognized in international humanitarian law, international criminal law treaties, and international customary law. The violations conducted by each party during a war are called war crimes. According to international humanitarian law, attacking or targeting civilians is acknowledged as a war crime (ICRC, 2014). In the news, Israel has often accused Hamas of committing a crime of humanity because they use civilians as human shields. This would be easily recognized as a war crime done by Hamas if it is proven true.
However, there is no further clarification on the accusations.
(6) Israel says it has killed 75 Palestinian militants, primarily Hamas operatives, and accuses the group of using civilians as human shields.
(1/7/1)
(7) The I.D.F. — which frequently accuses Hamas of using civilians as shields — provided advance warning to civilians in the building to allow evacuation. (2/9/1)
In comparison, the number of death caused by Israel is reported higher than the number of deaths caused by Palestine. Nevertheless, the lives of innocent people are taken away by the cruelty of a war between two states.
(8) In Israel, at least 10 people have been killed by Hamas rockets, Israeli authorities say. (1/8/1)
(9) According to the Israeli Air Force, Hamas, the militant group that rules the Gaza Strip, has fired more than 3,300 rockets toward Israeli cities and towns, killing at least 10 people. (3/3/2)
War also reveals how a group of individuals behind two conflicted states can be ignorant and cruel, as if they do not have compassion towards innocent civilians who are involved unwillingly in the conflict. In the first article, it is reported that Israel’s military acknowledged civilian deaths in the strike. They struck Hamas’s military infrastructure, which was located under civilians’ residences, and caused unintentional casualties. It seems as if they do not care if their action violates the law and causes damage or loss of human lives as long as they achieve their mission to overpower their opponent.
(10) Israel’s military acknowledged civilian deaths in the strike. (1/3/1) (11) The underground military facility collapsed, causing the foundations of
the civilian house above to collapse as well, causing unintentional casualties. The aim of the I.D.F. strike was military infrastructure.”
(1/4/2)
The researcher finds hundreds of people killed during the one-week fighting mentioned in the news articles. Those are only the number of dead victims mentioned in the text. More human lives are killed during the war between Israel and Palestine. According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the total deaths of Palestinians from 2008 to 2022 reached 6036 fatalities. In comparison, the number of Israeli fatalities is 272 people.
(12) The Israeli bombing in Gaza City killed at least 33 people, including 12 women and eight children, and wounded 50 others, according to Palestinian health authorities. (1/2/1)
(13) Israel says it has killed 75 Palestinian militants, primarily Hamas operatives, and accuses the group of using civilians as human shields.
(1/7/1)
(14) According to the Israeli Air Force, Hamas, the militant group that rules the Gaza Strip, has fired more than 3,300 rockets toward Israeli cities and towns, killing at least 10 people. (3/3/2)
In the news articles, the number of deaths informed is 33 people (including 12 women and eight children), 197 people (including 58 children), 75 Palestinian militants, 200 people, 10 people, 20 Palestinians, and 212 people (including at least 61 children). The brutality of war is seen in the loss of human lives. Civilians, women, and children are involuntarily involved in the armed conflict between countries and lose their rights to live in a safe environment. The killing of people is accepted as inhumane and morally wrong by society hence why the concept of killing people is considered brutal.
b. The Destroying of Building/Facilities
In the news articles, there are several paragraphs that discuss about the leveling of building and the disapproval of the action. The destroying of building and facilities in Gaza are executed by Israel forces. According to IDF, the goal of the strike was Hamas’ military infrastructure and the home of Hamas’ leader.
(15) In a separate strike, the Israeli military said it had bombed the home of Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that controls the Gaza Strip, in the southern town of Khan Younis. (1/5/1) (16) Israeli forces have hit more than 1,500 targets, causing serious damage
to Hamas infrastructure, including the network of tunnels it uses to move people and weapons, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other top officials said at a press briefing after a meeting of the security cabinet.
(1/9/1)
(17) “Hamas’s underground has gone down the drain,” he said. (1/10/1) IDF argues that Hamas uses civilian houses for military purposes to hide weapons. As the military is located under civilian buildings, the civilian houses above the underground military facility also collapse. IDF tries to justify its action by accusing Hamas of using the Human Shield method. Nevertheless, the strike causes damage and casualties. Many civilians lose their homes and lives.
(18) An Israeli aircraft “struck underground military infrastructure belonging to Hamas terror organization which was located under the road in the relevant area,” an Israeli Defense Forces spokesman said. (1/4/1)
(19) “The underground military facility collapsed, causing the foundations of the civilian house above to collapse as well, causing unintentional casualties. The aim of the I.D.F. strike was military infrastructure.”
(1/4/2)
(20) The strikes have destroyed 132 buildings in Gaza and left 2,500 people homeless, according to Palestinian officials. (3/6/2)
Israeli airstrike also destroys the al-Jalaa building, which houses media offices, including The Associated Press and Al Jazeera. IDF claims that Hamas uses the building for military purposes. However, the president of the news media, The Associated Press, denies the claim and asks for evidence. This strike clearly causes damage and put people inside the building at risk, even though no casualties are reported. The IDF gives warning to civilians an hour in advance for evacuation, and no extra minutes are given even with desperate pleads. The paragraphs below show the cruelty of the Israeli Army for not sparing an extra 10 minutes to retrieve the journalists’ belongings.
(21) In the minutes before the airstrike, Mr. Mahdi was filmed desperately pleading with the Israeli Army, asking them to allow four journalists who had been filming an interview – with the father of four children slain in an Israeli strike on a refugee camp on Saturday morning – an extra 10 minutes to retrieve their belongings. (2/10/1)
(22) An Israeli soldier told him: “There will be no 10 minutes.” (2/11/1) In (2/10/1), the text provides a detailed description of an event happening before the strike. An interview conducted with the father of four children slain in an Israeli strike on a refugee camp on Saturday morning is mentioned in the text.
This has no direct correlation within the context; however, this is necessary to emphasize and raise awareness of Israeli brutality. The reporter intends to inform the readers of another brutal occurrence in another Israeli strike that sacrifices the
lives of four children. This provides information on the actions of destroying of refugee camp and killing of children done by Israel during the war.
The leveling of al-Jalaa building raises questions and disapproval from many parties. Many agree that IDF destroys media facilities to stop the news coverage which expose the human suffering in Gaza. The possible agenda behind this attack is to warn media organizations to silence their voices. Israel has the power to destroy media facilities to stop the news about the war going out in the world.
(23) In a statement, the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists questioned whether the I.D.F. was “deliberately targeting media facilities in order to disrupt coverage of the human suffering in Gaza.” (2/14/2) (24) United Nations Secretary- General Antonio Guterres said that he was
“deeply disturbed” by the strike and warned that “indiscriminate targeting of civilian and media structures” would violate international law. (2/15/2)
(25) After the strike, journalists from other news organizations gathered near the rubble. Heba Akila, an Al Jazeera journalist who had been broadcasting from the tower when the warning call was made, said: “This is clearly to silence the truth and the voices of journalists.” (2/16/1) Article 53 of the 1949 Geneva Convention IV states that “Any destruction by the Occupying Power of real or personal property belonging individually or collectively to private persons, or to the State, or to other public authorities, or to social or cooperative organizations, is prohibited, except where such destruction is rendered absolutely necessary by military operations.” However, Israel still destroys buildings and facilities which they believe are the base of the military operations of Hamas. In the third news article, Israel is also reported to have struck civilians’ homes and facilities.
(26) Israeli forces have struck homes, refugee camps, medical facilities and other buildings. (3/4/2)
It shows the brutality of war as Israel executed war crimes by destroying facilities that are necessary for the people. Israel then defends themselves by stating that the buildings or facilities are used for military operations by Hamas. Though the claim is denied by the owner of the building, and it still causes damaged to the innocent people involved during this brutal conflict.
It is concluded that the destroying of building or facilities is brutal. It can cause damage, injury and casualties. The destroying of civilian’s facilities is a violation to the international law. It is also a brutal act of taking away accommodating facilities from those who need them, and of causing unnecessary damage that cost material loss.
c. The Use of Deadly Weapons
Weapons are important assets in war as they play a big role in defeating the opponent. These instruments are used to kill, injure and destroy for the sake of winning a war. Many innocent lives are forced to face the consequences of using deadly weapons in a war.
(27) At least 197 people — most of them civilians, including 58 children have been killed by Israeli planes, drones and artillery since the campaign began on Monday, Palestinian officials said. (1/6/1)
(28) The violence showed no sign of abating on Sunday, as Israel made the single deadliest airstrike yet on Gaza in the weeklong bombing campaign, and the number of rockets fired at Israel from Gaza topped 3,000 (1/1/1).
Many different kinds of weapon used in the Israel-Palestine war are mentioned in the news articles. These weapons carry bloods of innocent people involved involuntarily in the war. The deadly weapons mentioned in the news articles are rockets, explosive drones, artillery, underwater drones, explosives, and fighter jets.
According to the Humanitarian Law on the limitation of the choice of weapons, firearms or weapons with explosive projectiles are not prohibited. However, there are some exceptions identified by treaties such as explosive projectiles weighing less than 400 gram (Declaration of Saint Petersburg, 1968), bullets that expand or flatten in the human body (Hague Declaration, 1899), poison or poisoned weapons (Hague Regulations, 1907), chemical and biological weapons (Geneva Protocol, 1925), weapons that injure by fragments that shown undetected by X-rays, incendiary weapons, blinding laser weapons, mines, booby traps and “other devices”, and explosive remnants of war (Protocol 1-V to the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons, 1980-2003). While there are many inhuman weapons have been banned in treaties, it is still brutal to use weapons in the beginning against people, especially civilians including children and women.
There are mentioned several military weapons in the text, such as explosive drones, fighter jets, artillery, aircraft, and rockets. However, rockets are mentioned the most with the number of it fired. There are thousands of rockets fired at Israel from Gaza. In the last article, it is stated that the rockets fired has reached more than 3,300 rockets, with the result of killing at least 10 people. Knowing and proven how there is a high chance of killing people in performing these attacks, these two involved countries still executed the attack plan. War is very cruel and wicked to those whose lives are affected destructively.
(29) Israel has intercepted about 1,100 rockets, military officials said on Sunday.
(30) According to the Israeli Air Force, Hamas, the militant group that rules the Gaza Strip, has fired more than 3,300 rockets toward Israeli cities and towns, killing at least 10 people. (3/3/2)
