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Words as Weapons: Navigating the 2026 Iran-Israel Conflict

  • Writer: Allied Voices for Israel (AVI)
    Allied Voices for Israel (AVI)
  • 2 days ago
  • 6 min read

A Guide to the Entities, Ideologies, Language, Intent, & Regional Reality


Toronto Al-Quds March 2026

Following the death of Ali Khamenei and the January massacres of Iranian civilians, the regime in Tehran is fighting for its survival using every tool at its disposal - from direct missile barrages to disinformation. We must use terms that reflect the brutal reality of 2026, not the sanitized versions of the past.


IRGC [noun] Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps

  1. A branch of the Iranian Armed Forces founded after the 1979 Revolution, intended to protect the country’s Islamic theological system and provide a counterweight to the regular military (Artesh).

  2. Broadly categorized as war criminals by policy. Though it maintains a military structure, it is legally recognized as a terrorist entity by the Canadian government. In the current conflict, the IRGC’s operations are characterized by systematic violations of international law. This includes the deliberate targeting of major civilian population centers in Israel with ballistic missiles and the tactical use of Iranian civilian infrastructure (ie. schools, hospitals and mosques) as human shields to house and launch mobile missile batteries, effectively forcing civilian casualties to serve the regime’s propaganda.



Mullah [noun]

  1. A Muslim learned in Islamic theology and sacred law; a title commonly used for local clerics or teachers.

  2. In the context of the conflict, “Mullah” often refers to regime operatives rather than independent religious figures. Despite the regime’s documented aggression, countries like Canada have permitted the entry of regime-aligned mullahs, who operate as non-diplomatic agents. Their role is to monitor the Iranian diaspora, intimidate activists, and disseminate state-sponsored propaganda, using their clerical status to shield themselves from Western security scrutiny.


Jihad [noun]

  1. [noun] An Arabic word literally meaning “struggle” or “effort”. Historically refers to an internal spiritual struggle against sin or an outward physical struggle in defense of Islam.

  2. [verb] Derived from the root jāhada meaning “to strive”, “to labour”, or “to exert oneself” toward a specific goal or principle

  3. Rebranded by the Iranian regime as a total elimination agenda. The term has been stripped of its spiritual connotations and weaponsized as a mandate for the systematic elimination of the State of Israel and dismantling of Western democratic values. It serves as the “holy” justification for ballistic missile strikes against G-7 aligned targets, framing state-sponsored terror and expansionist warfare as a divine obligation.



Intifada [noun]

  1. An Arabic term meaning “uprising” or “shaking off”. Historically, it refers to two major periods of Palestinian unrest and violence against Israel, the First Intifada (1987-1993) and the Second Intifada (2000-2005). These periods were characterized by widespread violence, including suicide bombings, shootings, and attacks on civilians, resulting in significant loss of life.

  2. In 2026 the term has evolved into state-funded insurgency, it is no longer a “grassroots” movement but the branding for IRGC-orchestrated terror. These are tactical operations coordinated by Tehran to open internal fronts within Israel and around the world. By using this specific terminology, the regime attempts to sanitize premeditated, state-sponsored aggression as a popular uprising, cynically using local populations to distract from the IRGC’s significant military losses on Iranian soil.



Basij [noun]

  1. A paramilitary volunteer militia established in 1979 by Ayatollah Khomeini, currently serving as an auxiliary force subordinate to the IRGC.

  2. Functionally, the regime’s domestic executioners. While the term “volunteer” suggests a grassroots civilian force, the Basij is a state-funded, disciplined arm of the IRGC 

  3. used for internal repression. They orchestrated massacres against Iranian civilians during the nationwide street protests. Their role is to ensure regime survival through extrajudicial killings, torture, and the violent suppression of the “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement, acting as the primary deterrent against the Iranian people’s democratic aspirations.



Sovereignty [noun]

  1. The full right and power of a governing body over itself and its territory, free from external interference; the foundational principle of the modern state system and international diplomacy.

  2. Redefined as conditional accountability. Under international law, sovereignty is a responsibility, not an absolute shield. In the context of the conflict, a state forfeits its moral and legal protections when it manifestly fails to protect its population from mass atrocities or uses its territory to host global terror entities like the IRGC. Sovereignty is not a “get-out-of-jail-free” card; it does not grant a regime the right to commit war crimes or state-sanctioned massacres under the guise of internal affairs.



Proxy Entrapment [noun]

  1. The use of third-party groups, such as non-state actors to conduct warfare on behalf of a primary state to achieve its geopolitical objectives.

  2. Known as the “sacrifice strategy”, in the current conflict this refers to the Iranian regime’s deliberate policy of forcing Lebanon and Yemen into total war to delay the collapse of Tehran. By entrapping these nations through IRGC-funded proxies like Hezbollah and the Houthis, the regime creates a “buffer zone” of destruction. This strategy sacrifices non-Iranian lives and infrastructure to maintain the Ayatollah’s power, ensuring that while Beirut and Sana’a suffer the consequences of aggression, the regime in Tehran maintains a layer of plausible deniability while projecting regional power.



Ayatollah [noun]

  1. A high ranking title awarded to Usuli Shia clerics who have achieved the highest level of expertise in Islamic jurisprudence and sacred law.

  2. In the current geopolitical landscape, the title has been repurposed as a tool for dynastic rule. Following the death of Ali Khamenei, the title is now synonymous with his son, Mojtaba Khamenei. This elevation represents a definitive shift from a religious hierarchy to a hereditary dictatorship. The title is now used strategically to provide a divine veneer for a leader who lacks traditional scholarly credentials, effectively bypassing the Islamic Republic’s own constitutional requirements.



Martyrdom [noun] Shahadat/Shahed

  1. [noun] The death or suffering of an individual on behalf of a religious or political cause; historically regarded as an act of ultimate devotion or sacrifice.

  2. [verb] (to martyr) The act of killing or causing someone to suffer for their beliefs. In a military context, to deploy personnel in a manner where death is the expected or intended outcome.

  3. Functioning as state-sponsored exploitation. Under the IRGC and the leadership of the Ayatollah, “martyrdom” has been industrialized as a predatory recruitment tool. It is used to convince young Iranians and regional proxies that their individual lives are worthless compared to the survival of the theocratic state. This ideology serves as the primary fuel for “human-wave” tactics and suicide-drone campaigns, where the regime cynically converts human tragedy into a political and military commodity to sustain a failing dictatorship. This mirrors the PLO Charter’s glorification of armed struggle as the only way to “liberate” territory, regardless of the human cost. 



Axis of Resistance [noun]

  1. A self-identified anti-Western and anti-Israeli political and military alliance between the Iranian government, the Syrian regime, and various non-state militias (such as Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthis in Yemen, and Hashd al-Shaabi/Popular Mobilization Forces in Iraq)

  2. Formally recognized as the Octopus, this is a transnational terror network directed entirely from Tehran. The resistance mask has now been stripped away, revealing a colonial project where the Iranian regime uses its “tentacles” to destabilize sovereign Arab states. It is not a movement for liberation, but a strategic mechanism designed to replace regional stability and indigenous rights with an Iranian-regime dominated radical hegemony.



Language is a primary battlefield of the 2026 conflict. The Iranian regime relies on Western hesitation to call things by their real names, using religious and historical terms to mask state-sponsored terror. When we identify the Ayatollahs as hereditary dictators, the Basij as mass murderers, and sovereignty as a forfeited right for terror states, we strip the "Axis of Resistance" of its power to deceive.


Advocacy isn’t just about supporting a state; it’s about demanding a world where terror is identified, defined, and defeated. By providing this nuance you are standing with the victims of the regime—from the streets of Tehran to the communities of Israel and the diaspora in Canada.


Education is the first step toward security. Share this guide to challenge the "neutral" narratives on your campus and in your feed. Demand that our leaders address the unrestricted entry of regime operatives and hold the IRGC and its proxies accountable for their documented war crimes.



 
 
 

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