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An analysis of the Al-Manar media channel reveals how the Islamist organisation from Lebanon spreads its extremist messages in Europe.

The new publication by the Documentation Centre Political Islam (DPI) examines how Hezbollah (‘Party of God’) disseminates its content in German-speaking countries via its own media platforms such as Al-Manar (‘The Lighthouse’) and Al-Ahed News. The Shiite Islamist organisation is active politically, militarily and in social welfare, and in some cases performs state functions in Lebanon. It belongs to the anti-Western alliance known as the ‘Axis of Resistance’ and is in close contact with the Islamic Republic of Iran, in particular with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard. Hezbollah is active in various areas worldwide through its networks and structures. The military wing of the organisation is classified as a terrorist organisation by the European Union (EU). In Austria, the public display and distribution of symbols of the military wing has been banned since 2019 – in 2021, the ban was extended to all symbols of the group. 

The DPI report focuses on the online propaganda channel Al-Manar TV, which is considered Hezbollah's central mouthpiece. With its multilingual website in Arabic, English, French and Spanish, the channel targets a global audience, giving it a wide reach. According to its own description, the Al-Manar media platform is specifically used as ‘effective psychological warfare’ against ‘the Zionist enemy.’ As part of the dissemination of extremist content, anti-Semitic stereotypes are used and the actions of suicide bombers are glorified, among other things. The EU banned the broadcaster from EU satellites back in 2005, while some EU countries imposed additional bans. Despite these legal measures, the channel remained available via livestream on the internet. In December 2024, the German Commission for the Protection of Minors in the Media (KJM) instructed all telecommunications companies to block Al-Manar's websites in various languages. In Austria and Switzerland, the well-known media channel is still accessible online.

Hostilities against the West and Israel

The Hezbollah broadcaster offers a comprehensive news and entertainment programme in various media formats and with a professional design, primarily in Arabic. Al-Manar aims to reach the organisation's base and sympathisers, as well as other affiliated groups, and to intimidate its enemies. Its propaganda combines Islamist and anti-imperialist narratives and presents events from Hezbollah's perspective. One focus is on reports about the Middle East conflict, in which a position is taken against Israel and the West. In addition, there are also reports on Europe on various topics, which are interpreted in line with the channel's own religious-extremist agenda. For example, controversial debates, such as those surrounding Israel's participation in the Eurovision Song Contest 2025, are exploited for the channel's own purposes. Al-Manar is part of an international media network and repeatedly refers to well-known news agencies in its reports, including those from Russia and Iran. It deliberately disseminates counter-narratives to Western media, with the respective news organisations referring to each other.

With its problematic content, Al-Manar primarily targets Arabic-speaking communities, but also potential ideological allies, especially those from the anti-imperialist spectrum. Hezbollah's self-portrayal as an ‘Islamic resistance movement’ and the dissemination of divisive narratives are central pillars of its media strategy, which follows an anti-Western, anti-Israel and anti-Semitic orientation. In doing so, false connections are often constructed – for example, in reports about ‘the Zionist enemy’ – or important factors are ignored in order to place the communicated content at the service of the organisation's Islamist guidelines. For example, following the ban on Hezbollah's activities in Germany in 2020, Al-Manar reported, with reference to the Syrian Foreign Ministry at the time, that this decision was a submission to the ‘dictates of world Zionism’.

Ideological allies and transnational contacts

Hezbollah bases its religious extremist ideology largely on the concept of ‘Islamic resistance’ in the name of oppressed populations. Its chief ideologue, Muhammad Hussein Fadlallah, describes this as an endeavour to be a ‘resistance movement for the Islamic world’ and the ‘miserable peoples’ of the Global South. In order to increase its appeal, the Islamist group repeatedly employs anti-colonial rhetoric. By linking anti-Western and anti-Zionist positions, it also seeks to appeal to anti-imperialist leftists. Slogans such as ‘liberation,’ “justice” and ‘resistance’ play a central role in this. In the past, platforms from this anti-imperialist spectrum have published interviews with Hezbollah members. 

In Austria, a well-known activist who openly advocated pro-Hezbollah and pro-Hamas positions recommended content from the media channels Al-Manar and Al-Mayadeen – the latter being another media outlet within the sphere of influence of the Shiite Islamist organisation. The Austrian association Dar al Janub also shared Hezbollah messages in its social media posts, for example from its long-standing former secretary general Hassan Nasrallah. The reception of these posts by non-Islamist, often radical left-wing actors shows how Hezbollah propaganda appeals to a wider target group. 

The DPI report also suggests links between the Islamist group and international organisations active in the context of the Middle East conflict, such as the Belgium-based Hind Rajab Foundation. Its founder, Lebanese political activist Abou Jahjah, has repeatedly come into conflict with state authorities. In 2024, he was denied re-entry to the United Kingdom on suspicion of extremism. His posts on social media, for example after the death of Hassan Nasrallah in 2024, as well as his statements on Hezbollah, indicate ideological affinity. The foundation was established in 2024 with the aim of prosecuting Israeli soldiers in Europe for alleged war crimes in the Gaza Strip. In Austria, the foundation came to public attention in early 2025 after ‘wanted posters’ of an Israeli soldier it had reported were distributed in Vienna. In response, the Hind Rajab Foundation published a lawsuit filed in Munich online in March 2025. Even before established German-language media reported on it, Al-Manar and the Iranian state broadcaster PressTV picked up on the story.

Diaspora remains focus of Hezbollah

The war between Hamas and Israel, which has been ongoing since 7 October 2023, has greatly reduced Hezbollah's effectiveness. In addition, the organisation has been weakened by the death of its leader Hassan Nasrallah and the loss of important supply and communication routes from Iran as a result of Bashar al-Assad's loss of power in Syria, and is now dependent on new resources.  Hezbollah is now increasingly turning its attention to Europe, where it aims to reach sympathisers beyond the Arabic-speaking world with its narratives. Previous activities in Western countries and the current situation in Lebanon suggest that this strategic reorientation is a possible development. The present media analysis suggests that individuals from the Arabic-speaking diaspora in Europe who are sympathetic to Hezbollah, as well as supportive circles from other ideological movements, will continue to be of central importance for the activities of the Islamist organisation in the future.

Hezbollah in Europe: Media and Mobilisation