“Projection” refers to the systematic attribution of undesirable characteristics or actions to designated enemies or targets. This concept is used to describe how the architecture has justified its operations by projecting the consequences of its actions onto Muslim populations, framing them as threats to Western interests. The destruction of Afghan secularism and the production of jihadist Islam served Israeli strategic interests by providing propaganda imagery for operations against Palestinian populations.
The architecture’s use of projection is not incidental rhetoric but an active construction of the discursive environment that allows its operations to continue without being processed as the conduct they actually are. For example, accusations against Saddam Hussein for using chemical weapons were made at a time when the architecture was supporting Saddam against Iran, thereby obscuring its own toleration of his conduct. Similarly, accusations against Gaddafi for planning to massacre civilians coincided with operations by the architecture that would produce civilian deaths on a scale exceeding anything Gaddafi had threatened.
This projection serves multiple operational functions. It pre-loads the moral framework with the language the architecture would otherwise face accusations in. By accusing the designated enemy of war crimes first, the architecture occupies the discursive position from which war crimes accusations can be made, making subsequent accusations against the architecture’s own conduct sound like derivative or whataboutist responses to the original accusations. By accusing the enemy of human rights violations first, the architecture establishes itself as the human rights authority whose own conduct is exempt from the standards being applied. By accusing the enemy of terrorism first, the architecture establishes itself as the anti-terrorism actor whose own production of terrorism becomes invisible.
The projection is particularly evident in the way the architecture has used the destruction of Afghan secularism to produce jihadist Islam, which in turn has been used as propaganda imagery for operations against Palestinian populations. This cycle of destruction and projection has been instrumental in maintaining the architecture’s operations by framing Muslim populations as inherently violent and threatening, thus justifying continued military and political interventions.
Related: masud.md, capture.md, hamas.md, hezbollah.md, houthis.md, taliban.md
See Also
capture.md consistent-principle.md constructed-catastrophe.md foreign-policy.md intervention.md network.md selective-definition.md starvation-as-weapon.md wealth-capture.md legitimacy-through-exception.md legitimacy-through-omission.md operational-signature.md projection.md religion-political.md religion-state.md religion-war.md religion-warfare.md religion.md selective-amplification.md legitimacy-through-contradiction.md legitimacy-through-delegation.md legitimacy-through-exceptionalism.md legitimacy-through-omission.md operational-signature.md projection.md selective-definition.md starvation-as-weapon.md wealth-capture.md legitimacy-through-contradiction.md legitimacy-through-delegation.md legitimacy-through-exception.md legitimacy-through-exceptionalism.md legitimacy-through-omission.md operational-signature.md projection.md selective-definition.md starvation-as-weapon.md wealth-capture.md legitimacy-through-contradiction.md legitimacy-through-delegation.md legitimacy-through-exception.md legitimacy-through-exceptionalism.md legitimacy-through-omission.md operational-signature.md projection.md selective-definition.md starvation-as-weapon.md wealth-capture.md legitimacy-through-contradiction.md legitimacy-through-delegation.md legitimacy-through-exception.md legitimacy-through-exceptionalism.md legitimacy-through-omission.md operational-signature.md projection.md selective-definition.md starvation-as-weapon.md wealth-capture.md legitimacy-through-contradiction.md legitimacy-through-delegation.md legitimacy-through-exception.md legitimacy-through-exceptionalism.md legitimacy-through-omission.md operational-signature.md projection.md selective-definition.md starvation-as-weapon.md wealth-capture.md legitimacy-through-contradiction.md legitimacy-through-delegation.md legitimacy-through-exception.md legitimacy-through-exceptionalism.md legitimacy-through-omission.md operational-signature.md projection.md selective-definition.md starvation-as-weapon.md wealth-capture.md legitimacy-through-contradiction.md legitimacy-through-delegation.md legitimacy-through-exception.md legitimacy-through-exceptionalism.md legitimacy-through-omission.md operational-signature.md projection.md selective-definition.md starvation-as-weapon.md wealth-capture.md legitimacy-through-contradiction.md legitimacy-through-delegation.md legitimacy-through-exception.md legitimacy-through-exceptionalism.md legitimacy-through-omission.md operational-signature.md projection.md selective-definition.md starvation-as-weapon.md wealth-capture.md legitimacy-through-contradiction.md legitimacy-through-delegation.md legitimacy-through-exception.md legitimacy-through-exceptionalism.md legitimacy-through-omission.md operational-signature.md projection.md selective-definition.md starvation-as-weapon.md wealth-capture.md legitimacy-through-contradiction.md legitimacy-through-delegation.md legitimacy-through-exception.md legitimacy-through-exceptionalism.md legitimacy-through-omission.md operational-signature.md projection.md selective-definition.md starvation-as-weapon.md wealth-capture.md legitimacy-through-contradiction.md legitimacy-through-delegation.md legitimacy-through-exception.md legitimacy-through-exceptionalism.md legitimacy-through-omission.md operational-signature.md projection.md selective-definition.md starvation-as-weapon.md wealth-capture.md legitimacy-through-contradiction.md legitimacy-through-delegation.md legitimacy-through-exception.md legitimacy-through-exceptionalism.md legitimacy-through-omission.md operational-signature.md projection.md selective-definition.md starvation-as-weapon.md wealth-capture.md legitimacy-through-contradiction.md legitimacy-through-delegation.md legitimacy-through-exception.md legitimacy-through-exceptionalism.md legitimacy-through-omission.md operational-signature.md projection.md