Al Manar: Rallying Public Support for Al-Bashir

Over the weekend, the ICC warrant for Sudanese President al-Bashir continued to garner the most attention and audience involvement on alManar.com.lb. Four out of the five most commented stories are related to the ICC warrant and Al-Manar’s coverage continues to support Hezbollah’s rejection of the ICC proceedings against al-Bashir and is very similar to coverage on Iranian state-sponsored network IRINN.

An article on March 6th which detailed Al-Bashir’s intentions to travel to Darfur this week said that the Sudanese President “vowed to press ahead with peace efforts in Darfur despite the international arrest warrant against him,” implying that the ICC prosecution was hindering the peace process. The article also reported that the African Union is planning to send a delegation to the UN to “try to halt the warrant to give a chance for peace in Sudan.” While the articles do not take the additional step of directly saying that the ICC prosecution is intended to hurt the Sudanese peace process, quotes from al-Bashir fill in the gap. Al-Manar quotes al-Bashir who refers to ICC prosecution as a “neo-colonial plot” and says

“If someone wants to fight us, then they should not come with resolutions from the United Nations Security Council or the ICC. They have to come to our land to fight us themselves."


The article also detailed Sudanese protests of the ICC warrant where Sudanese nationals burnt American flags and stomped on photos of ICC Prosecutor Moreno-Ocampo attempting to illustrate that Sudanese popular will is supportive of al-Bashir.

There were several articles covering Al-Bashir’s visit to Darfur, which was repeatedly referred to as a “act of defiance.” I believe that this expression is meant to resonate with readers who admire organizations and individuals who are seen as standing up to America. The tone of audience comments was supportive of Al-Bashir and skeptical of the motivations of the ICC, which is seen as a tool of the West. For instance, an audience member from Trinidad and Tobago posted the following comment.

“It does not mater how far one goes to appease the White Man, he forever thinks that his station here on earth is god-like and we are all bound to his self anointed authority. Africa and the Middle East must come together and establish an impregnable block that no Authority or foreign entity shan't penetrate or influence.”

Rather then serving a news function and informing its audience about unfolding events in Sudan, Al Manar is seeking to color its coverage to rally its audience to support Hezbollah's stance of supporting Sudanese President Al-Bashir.