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“What makes psychological warfare and the spread of propaganda truly wicked is the lasting impact it leaves on communities and individuals long after [a] ceasefire is declared,” remarks Dr. Joseph El Khoury, consultant psychiatrist, in an interview with Daraj.” It is also important to recognize that not everything we perceive is premeditated by Israel. As humans, we have the tendency to assume that a monster is both highly efficient and fully aware of the harm it inflicts, yet inefficiency can produce the same effect.” 

This observation resonates sharply with the propaganda deployed during the recent war by the IDF, particularly Avichay Adraee, the head of the Arab media division in the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit. Adraee has become a central figure in the IDF’s psychological warfare against Lebanon, leveraging his role as a “war media influencer” to lead a cyber offensive. Recently, his name has been enough to cause a distortion among the Lebanese. Every other Adraee notification brings about displacement, death, and destruction. To the regular eye, his posts show a concerned military man trying to save civilian lives using alarming words and sometimes colorful hues. Yet, a closer examination into Avichay Adraee’s posts reveal that his propaganda seeks to justify acts of terror rather than demonstrate meticulousness to prevent mass destruction and civilian casualties. 

This report examines and analyzes Adraee’s social media posts during the 66 days of war and prior to it, to better understand the propaganda mindset that accompanied the Israeli military campaign against Hezbollah and the Lebanese people.

What is Propaganda? 

The use of propaganda and its effectiveness in warfare were extensively explored in WWII, where it proved successful in shaping public opinion and justifying horrors. Since then, countries have developed public diplomacy aiming to build long-term relationships and mutual understandings. While this often involves some degree of propaganda, it rarely went as far as Hasbara (הַסְבָּרָה). 

Hasbara is a reactive multifaceted Israeli propaganda strategy aiming to defend Israel’s actions and shape narratives both domestically and on international fronts. It is deeply integrated into Israeli National Security and at times coordinated with military and intelligence divisions. This strategy is managed, coordinated, and executed by different Israeli government bodies, including the Prime Minister’s Office and the Foreign Ministry’s Department of Media. 

Avichay Adraee is a prominent example of a Hasbara agent associated with the National Hasbara Forum. As the IDF’s Arabic spokesperson and a key link to the Arab world, Adraee exemplifies the type of official spokesperson the forum leverages to disseminate Israel’s messaging.

According to an article published on Haaretz on January 26, 2022, the Israeli government plans to spend 100 million shekels (US $31 million) to relaunch a project under the name of “Concert,” initially known as “Solomon’s Sling.” The purpose of this project is to strengthen positive perception of the country and combat delegitimization discourse on social networks and in global media within the span of 4 years. The article also mentions that, combined with private investment, the budget for the initiative should reach 200 million shekels by 2025. It also explains how Concert was launched to provide a Hasbara-oriented response and generate positive sentiment towards Israel on platforms like Facebook, X, Instagram, and other social networks where users engage in political discussion. 

Picture: Haaretz, Jan 26, 2022.

And yet, despite his actions, Adraee is not an evil, genius monster: he is a cog in a larger machine, serving as a messenger executing a carefully crafted Israeli strategy, supported by extensive resources and different government bodies. 

Impact:

The impact of a psychological war can manifest in various forms, affecting an individual’s social dynamics and overall wellbeing. 

The Unavoidable Avichay Adraee

The IDF communicates with Lebanese citizens through a persona called Avichay Adraee. Albeit a real human, Adraee is a well-scripted media character who addresses the Lebanese in a rigid Arabic language. According to Dr. Joseph El Khoury, the enemy’s ability to communicate in one’s native language increases their confidence by giving them a higher sense of control. Speaking an opponent’s native language is meant to make locals let their guards down and create a false connection. 

This connection can speak to the masses in one of two ways: (1) The “We are not as bad as you think we are” rhetoric, which is helpful when trying to push propaganda or (2) Pure intimidation. For the Lebanese, this creates a heightened sense of vulnerability, as it implies that an Israeli speaking Arabic and understanding its idioms wields a significant strategic advantage.

Preying on Inferiorities Amongst Societies:

“The IDF exploited the already existing sectarianism and preyed on differences within Lebanese societies to further destabilize the community from within. The purpose of this is to ensure destabilization within the Lebanese social fabric even long after [Israelis] leave.” added Dr. El Khoury.

 It is no secret that Lebanon is multiconfessional, with different communities ascribing to different political and social beliefs: however, one thing that unites us is common trauma by a common enemy— Israel. 

Scrolling through Adraee’s posts reveals clear signs that we have monitored and studied thoroughly way before the war even began. Avichay has always based his propaganda on the simplest forms of storytelling–the classic dichotomy of good versus evil– in an attempt to dilute complex arguments into palatable impressions. During the war, Israel has carried on with the same strategy— not only through its strikes that were predominantly concentrated on Shia towns or individuals tracked outside these areas, but also in its narratives. At one point, Daniel Hagari shifted the focus from fighting Hezbollah to directly insinuating that all threats emanated from “Shia” towns. 

Creating Patterns and Breaking Them

“I have noticed my anxiety heightens between 9 pm until late at night. I can’t recall having a full night’s sleep with or without the issuance of the evacuation orders. I think I got used to being scared in those hours.” said Haya, a 23 year old Beirut, Ashrafieh resident to Daraj. 

The patterns Israel followed in their strikes on Lebanon left both positive and negative marks on people. “In some cases, [these patterns] affect our biological clock and put us in a state of fear caused by an anticipated threat, regardless of its occurrence. In other cases, patterns create a sense of comfort. Breaking them breaches this comfort. Predictability is how we instill fear,” said Dr. El Khoury. 

When Adraee’s threats, which were mostly issued at night, switched to daytime, they introduced a new element of concern. One instance involved an order issued during the day targeting a building in Tayouneh, Beirut. A caller on a radio show mentioned that he was at work at the time, and his home was located next to the targeted building. Given the extremely short evacuation window, he didn’t even consider returning home to pack any belongings. 

Between November 12 and November 27, the IDF issued haphazard evacuation orders across random locations in Lebanon, accompanied by strikes that occurred unpredictably—sometimes as soon as 15 minutes after an announcement, and other times up to 4 hours later. 

This complete uncertainty has left the Lebanese on high alert at all times. 

Attacking the Senses

Spinning in a microwave, the tormenting sound of drones became the defining soundtrack of life in Lebanon. This monotonous tune occupied Lebanon for more than 66 days around the clock. 

“Drone sounds were a constant implication to our vulnerability,” said Dr. El Khoury. The sound of a surveillance drone is inescapable, a constant reminder of its purpose: the illegal collection of intelligence in real time. Its persistent presence in a certain area forces you to wonder if you are the next marked target. With streets and residential buildings blending into an indistinguishable uniformity, the unsettling reality becomes clear— we are all prone to this looming danger.

Scrolling Adraee 

Perhaps this post, dating back to July 2020 of Avichay Adraee playing chess with media pieces against what is meant to look like Iran and proxies, best describes the true essence and aspirations of the now 42-year-old military persona. 

Born on July 19, 1982 in Haifa, Avichay comes from a multicultural background. Of Iraqi descent, he started learning Arabic at home and later honed his language skills through formal education. He was recruited by the IDF to head the Arab Media Department at the age of 22. Transitioning to social media, Adraee established accounts under his own name. He built his platform on an already familiar face after being the IDF Arabic Spokesman on TV broadcasts, having made his debut in the 2006 war. 

 “So we went there, and I opened the accounts under my name, since the public knows me personally. They may hate or like me. So we got involved in platforms in Arabic. We didn’t know at the time it would make such a noise in the Arabic world.”

– Avichay Adraee interview with Jerusalem Post

This statement aligns with his approach to topics and of course, taken out of context, it could convey open arms welcoming his online presence. As such, Adraee uses engagement to his advantage – leveraging the“as long as they are talking about us” approach, regardless if the content is negative or positive. 

Currently, he has a total of 4.36 Million followers spread across several platforms:711.8K on X, 2.6M on Facebook, 175K on Youtube, and 908.2K on TikTok. The polished image of Avichay is a man “building bridges” between Israel and Arab speaking nations via ‘clean’ posting and carefully picked lingo. Adraee’s X profile has grown 29 percent since December 2023. He is pioneering a new approach of controlling narratives through promotions, debunks, and pushing propaganda aided by AI-powered social media intelligence that give him a feel of how information is resonating with the Lebanese people. 

Scrolling through Adraee’s posts, one can note several formats that he uses to promote the Israeli narrative which is either promoting a polished image of Israel, demonizing Palestinians, or furthering saturated hate speech directed towards Iran and other proxies. What stood out was his “playful” impressionable drawings that are at times attributed to an untraceable Saudi national, Fahed Al Jubeiri, or to an anonymous profile on X under the name Caricatir (@caricatir).

“Painting a picture of ominous and grim ideas in a condensed visual form encourages opinion formation beyond rational arguments,” said Saad Hajo, a seasoned caricaturist with decades worth of experience in political caricatures in the likes of Al Safir and Al Nahar, to Daraj. 

Despite his ‘cringy’ content, Adraee is hard to ignore because our lives depend on it. Threats of some incoming strikes and evacuation orders to the Lebanese are only communicated through his social media accounts. In 66 days, Adraee addressed the Lebanese more than 650 times. At least 378 of those times were evacuation orders divided into four types: (1)General, (2)Location, (3)Mapped Location and (4) Mapped Buildings. 

A general evacuation order is one that is not bound to a location, a location order is one that is linked to areas and towns, and a mapped order (showing locations and buildings) is one where maps are marked with a red target, and people are asked to evacuate that target, and in most cases, a 500-meter radius around it too.  

Caricature Justifying Terror: 

Caricatures turn dire thoughts and lengthy discussions into palatable, fastly-absorbed content. This form of ‘art’ was commonly used in WWII for enemy demonization, homefront support, and army recruitment. In a conversation about the effectiveness of caricature in a political setting, Saad Hajo said: “The mind combines words and pictures to create symbols and codes. There is something related to the collective consciousness where agreeability on a certain topic gives us satisfaction, and the mockery of a common enemy strengthens a bond.” 

In relation to authoritarian figures in power and caricature, Saad added: “Every powerful figure bases their control on prestige and discipline. The most important thing for an authoritarian is their image. Caricatures shake that image.” 

With those principles in mind, here are notable caricatures posted by Avichay Adraee across his platforms over the past few years. 

Destruction of Kfar Kila: This drawing, dating back to 2018, shows Hassan Nasrallah adding a jar labeled “Tunnels” and another “Explosives” into an urn called Kfar Kila. At the time, there was a movement in Lebanon under the name “You Stink”. Avichay seasoned it with a hashtag, hoping the content would get exposure across Lebanese social platforms. 

Rawan, a 29-year-old Kfar Kila native told Daraj she was in disbelief and had a sudden fright after knowing that since 2018, she has been visiting her hometown feeling extremely free and safe when unbeknownst to her, Israel was promoting a specific image of it. 

“Kfar Kila is a place booming with people in the summer and less so in the winter. It is where families meet on Sundays to rest in nature, surrounded by sedating scenery of olive groves. My favorite smell is lavender and it circles my teta’s home. It is where we get together to care for the lands every season. Under those olive trees, we are all children, and my teta is the only grown up. On Saturdays, I go to the farmer’s market in Beirut, mainly to replenish my organic soap from Kfar Kila… It is unjustifiable to destroy my hometown, and as a result, years worth of our parents putting their hearts & souls into building beautiful houses, which in turn helped create years worth of beautiful memories. I can’t even get to what those memories mean to me now… I am in disbelief that my Kfar Kila is no longer recognizable. Will I know how to drive towards my home, with not even one functional road to lead me there? 

It is invasive to walk my streets, it is suffocating to see news like that trying to portray Kfar Kila, this soft-holding village, as a military base. It is disturbing to find out this built up hate has been going on since 2018.” 

Mocking the famous “Watch it Burn” phrase: A post from 2019, a day after the 13th commemoration of the July 2006 war’s end, mentions that Hassan Nasrallah has been hiding in tunnels for 13 years, and the Israeli navy have used this time to train to greatness. 

On July 14, 2006, Hassan Nasrallah announced the successful missile strike on the Israeli Navy ship INS Hanit during a live broadcast. “Watch it burn” is undeniably one of the most famous phrases, as it highlighted Hezbollah’s military capabilities at the time and was seen as a pivotal moment in the war.

In this post, Israel mocks the strike while highlighting the destruction inflicted on Beirut. Since art is open to interpretation, one interpretation of this caricature could point to a stark imbalance in proportionality and targeting between Israel and Lebanon. Beirut is a home for civilians, the ship is a military base. So the hit to a small Israeli combat military base is met by the burning destruction of a city of civilians. 

Human Shields: On September 23 and September 25, 2024, during a time through which Lebanese were threatened to leave their homes, Adraee was posting drawings to support the human shield narrative justifying mass evacuation and the bombing of civilian houses. 

Louai, a 24-year-old French-Lebanese who only recently moved back to Lebanon in January 2024, sheds light on his thoughts surrounding Adraee’s posts.

“Since the start of the war, I have had to unwillingly tune into Avichay’s X feed in order to ensure the safety of my family in the south. Avichay routinely posts child-like satire, which after some research turned out to not be AI-generated and therefore deliberately thought-out. The stylistic choice of depiction, in my opinion, serves as a means to intuitively make out the message, and drill in propaganda, reiterating the human shield argument through grotesque lines. I do not care for propaganda, I only care about the safety of my family in the south. Unfortunately, these sketches are a reminder that nothing stands in the line of sight of belief: so long as someone is willing to carry it, someone else can surely justify it.”

Burning Olive Groves: People were ordered to leave not only their homes but also their olive groves. In the below picture, the olive oil – a healing oil from peaceful trees– is referred to as gun oil. This drawing is another attempt to demonize civilian spaces by repurposing the scene to fit a military context. It is meant to support their evacuation order claims specifically directed to owners and workers of olive groves in the south. 

“I am sure they don’t believe their own product (the drawing). It is just there to trigger us. This criminal burning of those precious trees feels personal. It seems like an effort of uprooting connection to an inherited land,” Fareed, an owner of an olive grove and a seasonal farmer, told Daraj. 

The Evacuation Orders: 

The IDF essentially converted Lebanon to evacuation orders. On September 23, the Lebanese received their first evacuation order from the IDF spokesman Avichay Adraee via his X account. Between then and up until the moment the ceasefire was set in motion on November 27 at 4 am, he had published a total of 378 orders spread across the four different aforementioned types; General, Mapped Location, Mapped Buildings and Location. 

First Type: General Evacuation Order:

During that timeframe, Adraee published 16 general evacuation orders. The idea behind it was to spark panic with very little direction. It was a broad statement asking the Lebanese to stay away from unidentifiable Hezbollah facilities, South Lebanon, beaches, and at times, olive groves. 

Post Examples: 

Second Type: Mapped Location Evacuation Orders:

Between September 23 and November 25, three days before the ceasefire began, 11 mapped location evacuation orders targeting several areas across Lebanon were issued. This order alerted Lebanese to clear out massive areas. Below is a table detailing these orders. 

Monday	23-Sept	2:53	PM	Bekaa
Tuesday	22-Oct	10:36	AM	Al Haush- 3 km Area
Wednesday	23-Oct	8:07	AM	Tyre-Historical Peninsula
Thursday	31-Oct	11:42	AM	5 km area Baalbak
Thursday	21-Nov	8:08	AM	AL Haush
Thursday	21-Nov	8:08	AM	Maashouk
Thursday	21-Nov	8:08	AM	Burj el shmele
Friday	22-Nov	7:01	AM	Burj el shmele
Friday	22-Nov	7:01	AM	Maashouk
Monday	25-Nov	9:14	AM	Hlta
Monday	25-Nov	2:23	PM	Tyre

Map Examples:

Third Type: Mapped Buildings Evacuation Orders:

This is the most impressionable order of all 4 types. These orders were issued at random hours. The latest –or earliest, depending on one’s perspective– orders were two orders published on X at 4:14 am on a Sunday ordering the evacuation of two buildings, one in Hadath and another in Haret Hreik with only a 20 min to 40 min window of evacuation time before the strikes. 

In only 66 days, 331 maps terrorized the Lebanese. These maps roughly included around 472 buildings as direct targets scattered across Lebanon.

Timing: 

Number of buildings asked to evacuate by hour

Number of evacuation orders by hour

In the Lebanese scenario, time played a significant role in making the evacuation orders not only impossible, but also terrorizing. In 66 days up until the last few hours of the agreed on ceasefire time; between 9 pm and 11 pm, Avichay Adraee issued 95 orders to empty 136 residential buildings and between midnight and 4 am, he published 50 orders to empty 73 residential buildings, as well as a 500 meter radius around each building, at once. 

One of the things we did is analyze the timing of evacuation orders and strikes to identify potential patterns. According to Dr. El Khoury, finding patterns in a chaotic situation can be an effective way to mitigate anxiety, as it offers a sense of predictability and helps individuals anticipate potential dangers.

Pattern (1): Between September 27 and October 10, the majority of evacuation orders were issued between 9:40 pm and 3:32 am. 

Pattern (2): Between October 16 and October 23, the majority of evacuation orders switched to day time between 4:14 am and 10:23 pm. 

Then, they circulate back to the first pattern for 3 days (October 23, 24, and 25):

Pattern (3): Between November 1 and November 13, haphazard evacuation orders were issued at random. 

Pattern (4): A clear escalation could be noted between November 14 and 1:21 am on November 27. 

Heat grid for pattern detection:

Beirut Suburbs:

There are false impressions that the Beirut Suburbs were emptied of residents after a few days of constant evacuation orders and hits. It is important to note that Dahyeh was in fact populated and included all demographics. Multiple testimonies on live TV broadcasts said that people had no place to go, especially with the absence of a pragmatic, considerate emergency planning. Their only alternative during these cold nights were plastic tents by the beach, which is why they chose to stay. 

Furthermore, stories emerged of elderly residents who did not have mobile phones and relief on landlines for daily communication, leaving them without access to the evacuation orders. Other residents who were not on X had assigned a family member the task of monitoring Adraee posts around the clock. In some areas like Burj el Barajneh, street watch groups were formed to monitor Adraee’s updates and alert neighbors. The only effective way to do this in the late hours was shooting bullets in the air to wake everyone up. Twenty-nine percent of the evacuation orders in Beirut’s suburbs were issued between 11 pm and 6 am. These orders included around 114 directly targeted buildings, along with a 500-meter radius around those structures. The first strikes were recorded as early as 20 min after the was published on X. 

Out of the total 331 mapped building orders, 279 threatened the Beirut Suburbs with Haret Hreik (98 maps), Burj el Barajneh (53 maps), Hadath ( 49 maps) Ghobeiri ( 44 maps) and Amrousieh Shwayfat (10 maps) being the most affected. The total estimated number of directly targeted buildings in the suburbs is 398, with approximately 366 of these buildings located in the five areas mentioned above. In most cases, the buildings were leveled and adjacent unmarked buildings were also leveled, or harshly damaged and currently at risk of being demolished.

Map Examples:

Fourth Type: Location Evacuation Orders:

Twenty Location evacuation orders were issued starting October 1, 2024. The first order emptied 28 towns, the second emptied 96, and after 54 days, more than 180 towns were cleared by the IDF and marked as danger zones until the ceasefire. 

Poster Examples:

Post Ceasefire: 

Thirty-seven towns were completely wiped out. Seventy towns within 10 kilometers from the border are still prohibited from entry. 

Towns situated approximately 60 kilometers from the southern border are subject to a “curfew” between 5 pm and 7 am.

In Our Control: 

“No one is countering Adraee, and there is no Lebanese alternative narrative to the propaganda he is pushing, which made him a soaring voice,” said Dr. El Khoury. He also told Daraj that there is no common to-do list that can be generalized across Lebanese individuals during these times to protect them. However, he suggests that we can alter some behaviors in our control that can help build a wall of protection between us and the constant psychological warfare: 

– Limit Consumption: In his branding, Avichay Adraee is supported by visuals that define the type of content he publishes. If it is not a matter of life or death, avoid it. The sole reason why we follow him is his evacuation orders. Limit interaction to that. 

– Ask yourself: “Why am I bothered by this?” Whenever you come across content that serves no military value and is just there as a floating opinion to cause friction with societies, avoid the trap. You are probably bothered by this because it was published to serve that purpose. 

– Update the Narrative: We want to believe everything done by Israel down to the very detail is intentional. It should also occur to us that maybe they are not that efficient and that some of the things they do are amplified from our end, when in fact, it is only a reflection of their inefficiency. The only clean image of them is the one that has been well-designed by Avichay Adraee. However, when we look at the unsupervised foot soldiers walking through our towns, we don’t see an exemplary performance of “ the most ethical army on Earth”. So are they really as organized and disciplined as they are made out to be?