"لا للاحتلال الإيراني" (No to Iranian Occupation): a mysterious advertisement that some Lebanese viewers have recently encountered on YouTube. The ad appears in the form of video clips, some of which are AI-generated, and all of them carry the slogan "No to the Iranian Occupation", which is also the banner of a YouTube channel called "لا للاحتلال" (No to the Occupation). A similarly named account is also active on X (formerly Twitter), using the handle @LalihtilalalIR.
Who Is Behind the Account and Who Engages with it?
In September 2024, this account appeared for the first time on X, and on January 13, 2025, it launched its YouTube channel, where it promoted a series of videos -19 in total- that have amassed 3.5 million views.
Eight of these videos circulated on the platform as advertisements, some of which focused on attacking Hezbollah and calling for its disarmament. Others reflected the positions and statements of politicians opposed to Hezbollah, particularly those affiliated with the Lebanese Forces party.
The Real and Imaginary Friends of “No To the Iranian Occupation”
We began by analyzing the "No to the Iranian Occupation" account on X using Hootsuite. The analysis produced a list of the most active accounts that engage with and repost content from this account over the past month. The majority of these accounts appear to be fake, and their IP addresses indicate that they are located in Saudi Arabia, as shown in the image below.
A number of accounts that engage with the "No to the Iranian Occupation" account orbit within the sphere of the Lebanese Forces party, the most prominent political opponent of Hezbollah in Lebanon.
One notable example is the account of Maroun Toni (@maroun_toni1), which ranks sixth on the list. This account interacted with and reposted content from the "No to the Iranian Occupation" account ten times within a single month.
The majority of the posts shared by Maroun Toni revolve around Hezbollah’s weapons and Iran’s political stances. The account’s activity clearly indicates support for the Lebanese Forces party and for Lebanon’s President, Joseph Aoun.
It’s also evident that most of the accounts interacting with Maroun Toni are active from Lebanon and Saudi Arabia. An example is the account @GermanosJoseph5, which also engages with the "No to the Iranian Occupation" account.
In turn, @maroun_toni1 also interacts with @khaddagesamia, a real account belonging to a user who hosts a show on YouTube. From her content, it is evident that she is a supporter of the Lebanese Forces party.
In addition to real accounts, the list of top accounts interacting with the "No to the Iranian Occupation" account includes Saudi accounts that frequently repost its content. One such account is @althunyan_fahad, which ranks third on the list.
Topping the most active accounts is the account of Ibrahim bin Saeed Al-Rumaihi; a Saudi account that reposts everything related to news about Saudi Arabia and politically aligned countries in the region. At the same time, it shares many political developments in Lebanon and frequently interacts with accounts such as Nadine Barakat and Nancy Lakiss, both of whom also repost core content from the "No to the Iranian Occupation" account.
The Most Prominent Hashatags Used by “No To the Iranian Occupation”
The social media analysis tool Meltwater reveals that the hashtag "#لا_للاحتلال_الإيراني" (No to the Iranian Occupation) is often accompanied by other hashtags such as #حزب_الله_انتهى (Hezbollah Is Over), #صار_وقت_التغيير (Time For Change), and #جيش_شعب_دولة (Army People State).
The following chart illustrates the reach achieved by the hashtags "#لا_للإحتلال_الإيراني" (No to the Iranian Occupation), "#عهد_جديد_للبنان" (A New Era for Lebanon), and "#حزب_الله_انتهى" (Hezbollah Is Over) from their launch until today, with the total reach of content using these hashtags approaching 28 million. The most prominent accounts that contributed to the spread of these hashtags are shown in the image below.
The analysis of these accounts reveals that they share similar political orientations: they either support Saudi Arabia or support the Lebanese president. Most of the accounts shown in the graph use these hashtags and interact heavily with the "No to the Iranian Occupation" account. An example is Fahad bin Abdullah, whom we previously identified as likely a Saudi account with indications it might be fake, as there is no personal information available about it.
Also prominent among the most active accounts using the hashtags are several Lebanese accounts whose positions suggest they do not support Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, despite his opposition to Hezbollah’s possession of weapons. The "No to the Iranian Occupation" account posts videos criticizing the prime minister, such as a video of Nadine Barakat attacking Nawaf Salam, Economy Minister Amer Bassat, and the group "Kulluna Irada" ("We All Are Will").
The real common link between the accounts interacting with "No to the Iranian Occupation" and other Lebanese accounts—such as Nadine Barakat, Maryam Majdolin Al Lahham, Tony Paulos, Tony Abi Najm, Joseph Abu Fadel, Elie Khoury, Samia Khaddaj, Rami Naeem, and others, is their focus on attacking "Kulluna Irada" and Nawaf Salam.
Arabi Facts Hub previously analyzed a coordinated campaign targeting "Kulluna Irada" and several independent Lebanese media institutions.
From the content of these accounts, it is clear they support the Lebanese Forces party and back the banker Anton Sehnaoui. The "No to the Iranian Occupation" account also promotes journalists and politicians affiliated with the Lebanese Forces party.
