Iran’s Hispan TV promoting antisemitism in Latin America, says rights group

The Jewish rights group's report highlighted the role of Iran's state-run Hispan TV, established in 2011, in disseminating antisemitic content and incitement through various platforms including satellite, cable, live-stream, and social media.

ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt, currently visiting Argentina, stated, "As we mark the 30th anniversary of Argentina's deadliest terrorist attack, the AMIA bombing by the Iranian regime and its proxy Hezbollah, it is clear that the Iranian regime continues to spread antisemitism through various channels," referring to an attack on a Jewish community center which killed 85 and injured over 300 more.

The report details several instances where Hispan TV has openly propagated antisemitic tropes and false narratives. In 2013, the site published an article titled ‘Why Jews Dominate Hollywood,’ perpetuating the myth of Jewish control over the entertainment industry.

Most recently, following Hamas’s attacks on southern Israel, the site published disinformation and denialism, blaming Israel for the violence and absolving Iran-backed militants Hamas of responsibility for the attack which saw 1,200 mostly civilians murdered and 250 more taken hostage.

"Alongside physical violence, the Islamic Republic of Iran, as the world’s leading state-sponsor of antisemitism and terrorism, uses cultural centers and media across Latin America to incite hostility against Jewish communities," Greenblatt said.

Hispan TV has also been accused of distorting the Holocaust and making harmful comparisons between Nazi Germany and Israel. Iran has long propagated a system of Holocaust denial in its bid to undermine the existence of a Jewish state.

The ADL listed multiple other channels lran uses to spread incitement such as Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), which the United States sanctioned in 2013 and 2022 for human rights violations.

"The Iranian regime primarily utilizes IRIB's PressTV and its Spanish-language counterpart, Hispan TV, to promote global antisemitism," the group added. Around 200,000 Jews remain in Latin America, mostly in Argentina and Uruguay.

Founded in 2018, Hispan TV which has a global reach of nearly 600 million Spanish language viewers is operated by Iran’s state-controlled broadcaster Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) whose head is appointed directly by Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

The report also highlights Hispan TV's featuring of a senior Hezbollah leader’s praise of Iran as the “foremost leader of global resistance movements” and the sole nation confronting the pro-Israel system led by the West.

In 2019 Google blocked 39 YouTube channels with connections to Iran including Press TV and Hispan TV for “violating Google’s policies.”

In December 2022, amid Iran’s nationwide protests sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini in morality police custody, the European Union sanctioned Iran's IRIB for “producing and broadcasting the forced confessions of detainees.”

IRIB had been sanctioned in February 2013 by the United States for its “involvement in the Iranian government's censorship activities.” Additionally in November 2022 the United States extended these sanctions to include several IRIB officials for their involvement in the broadcast of coerced confessions of dual nationals, civil society activists, and political prisoners.

Despite these restrictions, the ADL warned that Hispan TV 's content still reaches global audiences through satellite, social media including Facebook, Instagram, and home streaming video platforms such as Roku.

“Policymakers, media corporations, and digital platforms must concentrate on closing the loopholes which allow Hispan TV to disseminate its hate campaign to global audiences,” the ADL urged.

Iran has long been developing its ties with Spanish-speaking Latin America as it bids to extend its influence. Last year, former president Ebrahim Raisi toured the region, targeting fellow sanctioned nations such as Venezuela, Cuba, and Nicaragua.