The Caricature as a Soft Power in Advocacy for Humanitarian Issues Digitally The Palestinian Cause as a Case Study: An Analytical Study on a Sample of 'Alaa Al-Laqta's' Drawings

Abstract

The study explores the relationship between caricatures, soft power, and the Palestinian cause, considering it a humanitarian issue before being molded into politically and religiously charged narratives. This is particularly relevant amid the ongoing changes and escalating events in Gaza, marked by blatant Israeli massacres and violations. The focus is on the role of cartoonists in this context, as cartoon art has become a non-violent digital struggle used to enhance resilience and advocate for the Palestinian cause. The research adopts a qualitative approach, employing a descriptive-analytical method. The researcher utilizes a coding sheet as a research tool to examine the relationship between the visual and symbolic elements used and the messages conveyed by the artist "Alaa Al-Laqta" through his cartoons published on his personal Facebook page. The study yields several results, highlighting that caricatures serve as an expressive tool reflecting the lived reality in a contrasting approach to serious or comic forms of expressive arts. They demonstrate narrative and informative effectiveness as a counterforce to Western and Arab media content, portraying the pain of the Palestinian people and presenting to the public a reality that diverges from Israeli narratives propagated by various traditional and digital media channels.