Resistance, Social Capital, and International Reactions in Iran’s 12 Day War: Reframing the Idea of Resistance in a Hybrid Conflict

Abbaszadeh, Reza; Ghafouri, Ghazaleh

doi:10.22059/jices.2026.417543.1115

Resistance, Social Capital, and International Reactions in Iran’s 12 Day War: Reframing the Idea of Resistance in a Hybrid Conflict

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Reza Abbaszadeh ¹

Ghazaleh Ghafouri ²

¹ Department of English Language and Literature, University of Isfahan, Iran

² Department of English Language and Literature, Faculty of Foreign Languages and Literature, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran

10.22059/jices.2026.417543.1115

Abstract

This study uses a qualitative research design to examine how resistance, social capital, and international reactions were constructed, mobilized, and contested during Iran’s 12-Day War. Because hybrid conflicts operate across military, informational, cultural, and diplomatic arenas at once, the article combines discourse analysis, thematic content analysis, process tracing, and triangulation across multiple data sources. This approach makes it possible to interpret the war as a complex socio-political event rather than a purely military confrontation. This research investigates how resistance was discursively constructed and redefined during the 12-Day War, how social capital manifested and functioned as a mechanism of wartime resilience, and how regional and international actors framed and responded to the conflict. Findings suggest that resistance was shaped not only by battlefield developments but also by identity, legitimacy, and narrative struggle. Social capital played a central role in sustaining cohesion and adaptation throughout the conflict. Bridging social capital enabled cross-community coordination, information sharing, and digital counter-misinformation efforts through online verification networks and diaspora-based advocacy. International reactions were similarly shaped by more than military outcomes. Global media framing, humanitarian narratives, and diplomatic signaling influenced how the war was interpreted abroad, aligning with theories of soft power and narrative influence. The article shows how Iran sustained internal cohesion and external messaging amid external pressure and internal fragmentation.

Keywords

Resistance

Social Capital

Hybrid Conflict

12 Day War

Iran

Soft Power