Israel-Linked Network Aims to Influence Narrative of Protests in Iran

Context of the Protests in Iran

Recently, protests in Iranian cities have sparked a wave of support on social media, with the hashtag #FreeThePersianPeople trending. However, a detailed analysis of data conducted by Al Jazeera reveals that most posts are generated by external networks, especially from pro-Israel circles.

Coordinated Campaign

The majority of analyzed posts were retweets, with only 170 users creating original content, even though the campaign reached 18 million users. This suggests the existence of a coordinated influence operation, often referred to as "astroturfing."

Politicization of Discontent

The campaign has attempted to reinterpret the protests as an ideological conflict, portraying the Iranian regime as an "oppressive Islamist regime." This has led to efforts to isolate the regime from Iranian society and transform economic grievances into a civilizational struggle.

Calls for External Intervention

Discussions quickly evolved into explicit calls for external military intervention, supported by former U.S. President Donald Trump. The response was amplified by members of the U.S. Congress urging direct actions against Iran.

Conclusions

The investigation suggests that the hashtag #FreeThePersianPeople was not a spontaneous expression of internal discontent but a politicized information operation constructed from outside Iran, led by networks linked to Israel and its allies.