Bottom Line Up Front
Reps. Jefferson Shreve (R-IN) and Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) introduced legislation to counter Iranian and Hezbollah influence operations in Latin America. Iran’s extremist regime has targeted the region to spread its anti-American ideology. Over the past four decades, Iran has patiently pursued the goal of disseminating its message across the Western Hemisphere, leveraging the resulting support it has garnered to advance its political objectives.
The elements of this network are vast and varied, comprising mosques, cultural centers, educational institutions, media outlets, and publishing houses. This includes Iran’s Al Mustafa International University, which recruits heavily in Latin America and has been sanctioned by the United States for its role in Iran’s propaganda efforts. These influence operations also include HispanTV, the Spanish-language subsidiary of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting corporation (IRIB), which has also been sanctioned for its role in spreading disinformation and supporting human rights violations.
The BANNED in Latin America Act (H.R. 4531) signals congressional intent to no longer allow Iran’s network to operate unchallenged.
FDD Action supports this bipartisan legislation and urges Members of Congress to cosponsor it.
- Bill Title: Barring Adversarial Networks and Notorious Extremist Destabilizers (BANNED) in Latin America Act
- Leads: Reps. Jefferson Shreve (R-IN) and Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ)
- Cosponsors: Reps. Bill Huizenga (R-MI), Maria Elvira Salazar (R-FL), and Mark Messmer (R-IN)
What You Need to Know
- Al Mustafa University: With a budget of nearly $100 million a year, directly provided by the Office of the Supreme Leader, Al Mustafa has been able to train tens of thousands of emissaries, including many from Latin America, who are now deployed overseas to spread the word of Iran’s sponsored Axis of Resistance and recruit locals to the cause of the regime’s revolution. Establishing mosques and cultural centers is central to this elaborate, global effort to spread Iran’s revolutionary brand. These institutions pose as places of worship and cultural inquiry. In fact, they are propaganda tools in Iran’s extremist war against the West.
- Terrorism in the Western Hemisphere: In November 2023, Brazilian authorities foiled a Hezbollah plot to target Jewish institutions in Brasilia, the country’s capital. The point man in the plot was a Hezbollah member with both Syrian and Brazilian citizenship who sought to recruit Brazilian nationals with a criminal background. He was also instrumental in the recent establishment of an Iranian cultural center in Brasilia and was closely connected to both a prominent Shi’a Brazilian convert and key Iran propagandist, and to a Shi’a cleric who works in a São Paulo Shi’a mosque who was also affiliated with Hezbollah.
- Iran’s HispanTV: HispanTV has routinely normalized terrorism under the rubric of resistance, repeatedly presenting it as the only path open to defend Palestinian rights. Since October 7, Iran has activated HispanTV’s news coverage and commentary to engage in a hateful campaign of incitement and disinformation, whose primary purpose is to influence Spanish-language audiences across Latin America.
- Iran’s ‘missionary’ work: Missionary work aims to broaden Tehran’s sphere of support within local societies by gaining new converts and indoctrinating them to its revolutionary brand of Shi’a radicalism. Iranian missionaries have purposely sought links with political movements and non-governmental organizations that share an affinity with Iran’s revolutionary ideology, often leveraging existing anti-American sentiment. The network is led by Iranian cleric Mohsen Rabbani, one of the suspects in the bombing of the AMIA Jewish cultural center in Buenos Aires in 1994.
About the Legislation
The BANNED in Latin America would require the Secretary of State to develop a strategy to counter Iran and Hezbollah’s propaganda, missionary networks, and influence operations. The strategy must:
- Address the Proliferation of Iranian Cultural Centers, which promote harmful ideologies, through diplomatic efforts and sanctions.
- Restrict the Travel and Activity of Iranian emissaries, who contribute to Iran and Hezbollah’s objectives throughout the region, through visa denials, sanctions, and other restrictive measures.
- Strengthen U.S. Intelligence Capacity to identify, monitor, and disrupt these malign networks.
- Disrupt Iranian and Hezbollah Media Networks, including Iran’s HispanTV and Hezbollah’s Al Mayadeen Español, through sanctions, designations, and cooperation with regional partners.
- Confront Radicalization and Recruitment by Iran’s Al Mustafa International University Network and its affiliated entities through potential U.S. designations and other activities.
FDD Action Expert Analysis
“Now more than ever, what is needed is a dedicated strategy to combat Iran and Hezbollah’s ability to conduct influence operations in the Western Hemisphere. FDD Action strongly supports the BANNED in Latin America Act, which signals congressional intent to stop the unchallenged operation of this network leveraged by these malign actors to carry out terror attacks, spread hateful ideology, and establish a foothold in America’s backyard.”
– Tyler Stapleton, Director of Government Relations at FDD Action