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One of the most surprising aspects of the current war with Iran has been the Iranians’ effective use of information warfare against the United States and Israel. Iran has waged information warfare in myriad ways, with some efforts dedicated to confusing its adversaries, and some earmarked for domestic consumption. Other aspects have been extremely unorthodox yet arguably effective, including AI-generated videos mocking President Trump and his administration. The Joint Chiefs of Staff publication “Joint Publication (JP) 3-0, Joint Campaigns and Operations,” defined information warfare as “the integrated employment of IRCs [information related capabilities] in concert with other lines of operation to influence, disrupt, corrupt, or usurp the decision making of adversaries and potential adversaries while protecting our own.” But in an era of memes and deepfakes, information warfare is more expansive in its means, methods, and motivations.
Iran's approach to information warfare has evolved over time. At its core, the overarching message has been one of ‘Death to America,’ and portraying the United States and Israel as the 'Great Satan' and the ‘Little Satan.’ More than anything, this rallying cry was a multi-decade effort, dating back to the 1979 Islamic Revolution, to rally around the flag and seek to create a unifying narrative in opposition to the United States and Israel. Iran's information warfare was thus focused inward, with propaganda and media operations concerned with domestic public support for the regime. Iran also spent time, energy, and resources exporting its revolution abroad, and thus, conducted operations in and through the information environment that highlighted its role as the benefactor to Shia militia groups in Lebanon, Iraq, and Yemen, while also promoting the Palestinian cause, an effort that won Iran some hearts and minds in the Sunni Arab and non-Persian corners of the Middle East.
In the current conflict with the United States, Iranian information warfare has adopted several dimensions. First, Iran has attempted to shape the narrative and impact global public opinion by portraying the U.S. and Israel as warmongering nations hellbent on destroying Iran and all of its people. Statements by U.S. and Israeli leaders have played into this messaging, with some of President Trump's posts on his social media site Truth Social highlighted as proof by the Iranians that the U.S. will stop at nothing short of complete destruction: “A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will.” AI-generated videos have mocked President Trump, pointed out his administration’s mishandling of the Epstein files, and highlighted previous American wars, portraying the United States as militant and an unchecked aggressor and destabilizing force in the world. Other videos have focused on an errant American missile strike that hit an Iranian girls’ elementary school in Minab, mistakenly killing as many as 175 people, most of them children. Official Iranian media has also focused on this incident extensively in its reporting.
Perhaps the most popular and viral videos produced by the Iranians are the Lego videos depicting different scenarios featuring members of President Trump’s cabinet, including the President himself, but also Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and FBI Director Kash Patel. These videos have been produced by an entity known as “Explosive Media,” and have been promoted by the Iranian regime, though it is unclear what the relationship is, if any, between the media outlet and the current leadership in Iran. What is clear, however, is that whoever is helping produce these videos has a keen understanding of American pop culture. The videos have spread across Instagram, TikTok, and other popular social media platforms, going viral in some cases, and featuring catchy lyrics and music, including American-style hip-hop and rap music.
In some cases, the videos have been aimed at populations in other countries, promoted in an effort to demonstrate kinship or solidarity. For example, one video was aimed at espousing goodwill toward the people of Lebanon during Israel’s bombardment of Beirut and other parts of the country. According to Al Jazeera, the team behind Explosive Media, responsible for producing these videos, is approximately ten people, ranging in age from 19 to 25 years old. Information warfare means contesting the information environment and competing in the war of ideas, where narratives are formed and opinions are shaped.
Iranian embassies have also been used to peddle some of the country’s most successful information narratives. Embassies — especially those located in African countries — have gone viral on platforms like X for posting memes reacting to statements by President Trump and White House officials. The Iranian Embassy in South Africa has been especially prominent. In late March, it posted an image of a child’s toy steering wheel sitting in a car’s passenger seat in response to Trump’s March claim that the United States could potentially control the Strait of Hormuz alongside Iran. Iran’s embassy in Zimbabwe has also become a notable source of these reaction memes. Yesterday, it responded to Trump’s lengthy Truth Social post on birthright citizenship by writing, “not sure anyone read all of it yet. Does it have anything to do with us?” These accounts also engage with one another, often reinforcing a shared effort to portray Trump and his administration as absurd or unserious. According to the Institute for Strategic Dialogue, posts from these local embassy accounts have amassed hundreds of millions of views during the first 50 days of the conflict and helped recast Iran’s image for global audiences “toward that of an irreverent, witty underdog confronting the United States.”
The modern information warfare domain includes AI-generated content, disinformation and fake news, influence campaigns, propaganda, and both offensive and defensive cyber operations. According to an analysis by the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism (ICT) at Reichman University in Israel, during last summer’s Twelve Day War between the United States and Israel, on one side, and Iran, on the other, Tehran’s AI-generated images were centered around five distinct narratives: the perception of widespread destruction across Israel; ridicule directed at Israeli leadership while glorifying then Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei; projecting Iranian dominance over Israel, with footage of military preparations for missile launches; “daily strike” fakes allegedly showing Iranian missile or aircraft attacks on Israeli targets; and fake news validated by AI-generated videos. Even putting out fake videos with images depicting attacks on Israel (when the videos could be from other parts of the world) is intended to confuse the enemy and inflict psychological damage on Israeli civilians, while polluting the information environment.
The United States has not performed well in the information environment, with President Trump failing to make a coherent case for war to the American public. In several cases, administration figures, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, have suggested that Israel and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu helped steer the United States into this conflict. President Trump himself has offered myriad reasons for launching the war, though the President never made the case before Congress, and his objectives for what would constitute a clear American victory have shifted throughout the course of the war. Iran’s control of the Strait of Hormuz has been a constant feature of the information warfare environment, with various handles trolling President Trump, especially in the wake of his profanity-laced tirade on social media on Easter Day.
https://thesoufancenter.org/intelbrief/
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