While the mainstream media focuses its attention on the progress of conventional air and land operations in the battle between Israeli and Hezbollah forces, victory may be determined through information operations.
Hezbollah’s Information Operations
The centerpiece of Hezbollah’s information operations campaign is al-Manar TV. Al-Manar is a satellite broadcast network affiliated to Hezbollah. It often broadcasts official statements from Hezbollah leadership. For example, on August 3, Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah spoke on al-Manar TV and warned Israel that Hezbollah would target Tel Aviv with long-range rockets if Israel attacked Beirut. Nassrallah stated, “If our capital, Beirut, is attacked, we will attack your capital, Tel Aviv.”
Hezbollah’s Desired Goals
Nasrallah’s statements and other propaganda are typically designed to deliver two very different messages to two very different audiences. First, Nasrallah is seeking to terrorize and intimidate the Israeli population by threatening the country’s major population centers. In the same way that Hezbollah’s sustained insurgency resulted in the Israeli publics’ demands for a withdrawal from southern Lebanon in 2000, Hezbollah is hoping that a sustained information operations campaign coupled with an effective bombardment and guerrilla-like ambushes in southern Lebanon will force Israel to abandon its assault into Lebanon. Second, Nasrallah seeks to rally the Lebanese population, Arabs in the Middle East, and Muslims around the world to support Hezbollah. Each day that Hezbollah is able to launch rocket attacks into Israel is another day that Hezbollah demonstrates that it is able to carry on the fight against Israel. The ability to broadcast its intentions and footage of successful attacks over the airwaves gives Hezbollah an advantage in the campaign to win the ‘hearts and minds’ of the Lebanese, Arabs, and Muslims. This support is vital for Hezbollah’s military arm, as its guerrilla tactics rely on the support of the Lebanese people to shelter them from the Israel Defense Force (IDF).
Israel’s Information Operations
In the ongoing conflict , Israel has attacked al-Manar multiple times in an effort to disrupt Hezbollah’s ability to shape the information battle space. Israeli warplanes bombed al-Manar headquarters. However, al-Manar continued to air programming by broadcasting from alternate locations.
Additionally, Israel has conducted offensive computer network operations against al-Manar. As of July 31, media outlets reported that Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) intelligence units had hijacked al-Manar’s signal and altered its programming (source).
According to Zone-H, there are three main ways to attack and alter the content of a satellite transmission:
1. Switch tapes or digital media before broadcast
2. Hack into the digital storage unit that houses the programming content and make desired changes, or
3. Hijack the satellite signal at its origination point or the uplink station.
Israel’s Desired Goals
According to a former senior IDF official, “the aim of this [operation] is to disassociate the innocent civilian from the terrorist, who is using them and abusing them, by operating in the midst of a heavily populated area.” Altering the content of al-Manar is a more nuanced and perhaps better strategy than attempting to shut down the network. By injecting its propaganda into al-Manar’s airwaves, Israel may be able to turn undecided Lebanese civilians against Hezbollah and reduce the group’s ability to operate from Lebanon.
