{"id":8794,"date":"2026-01-16T04:35:47","date_gmt":"2026-01-16T04:35:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/?p=8794"},"modified":"2026-01-16T04:35:47","modified_gmt":"2026-01-16T04:35:47","slug":"network-linked-to-israel-pushes-to-shape-external-iran-protest-narrative-israel-iran-conflict","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/?p=8794","title":{"rendered":"Network linked to Israel pushes to shape external Iran protest narrative | Israel-Iran conflict"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Transcendent moments in geopolitics that reverberate around the world are no longer just forged in the streets or inside situation rooms. They are increasingly engineered in the digital sphere, where actors, often with a self-serving agenda, compete to control the narrative, define its meaning and decide who speaks for whom.<\/p>\n

In recent weeks as protests erupted in Iranian cities, the hashtag #FreeThePersianPeople trended on X. The campaign was accompanied by a flood of posts heralding an imminent \u201cdecisive moment\u201d in Iran\u2019s history and presenting themselves as the authentic voice of the Iranian people.<\/p>\n

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Recommended Stories <\/h2>\n

list of 4 items<\/span>end of list<\/span><\/section>\n

However, an extensive data analysis by Al Jazeera reveals a different picture.<\/p>\n

\"Data
Data from Tweet Binder reveals that most of the posts lack organic engagement [Al Jazeera]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Tracking the sources of this interaction and its dissemination paths uncovers that the digital campaign did not originate organically from within Iran.<\/p>\n

Instead, it was spearheaded by external networks \u2013 primarily accounts linked to Israel or pro-Israel circles \u2013 that played a central role in manufacturing momentum and steering the discourse toward specific geopolitical goals.<\/p>\n

\u2018Abnormal\u2019 patterns of circulation<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The data associated with the campaign reveals a striking anomaly in how the hashtag spread, indicative of artificial amplification.<\/p>\n

Al Jazeera\u2019s analysis found that 94 percent of the 4,370 posts analysed were retweets compared with a negligible percentage of original content.<\/p>\n

More significantly, the number of accounts producing original content did not exceed 170 users, yet the campaign reached more than 18 million users.<\/p>\n

This massive gap between the limited number of sources and the vast reach is a hallmark of coordinated influence operations, often referred to as \u201castroturfing\u201d, in which pre-packaged messages are amplified to create the illusion of widespread public consensus.<\/p>\n

A single narrative, multiple formats<\/strong><\/h2>\n

A review of the content shows the hashtag was not merely an expression of social or economic grievances. Instead, it carried a rigid political framework designed to reframe and actually pour on the unrest.<\/p>\n

The discourse portrayed developments inside Iran as a \u201cmoment of collapse\u201d and relied on sharp binaries: \u201cThe People vs. The Regime\u201d, \u201cFreedom vs. Political Islam\u201d and \u201cIran vs. The Islamic Republic\u201d.<\/p>\n

The campaign heavily promoted Reza Pahlavi, the son of Iran\u2019s last shah, as the sole political alternative. Pahlavi himself engaged with the campaign, a move that was immediately amplified by Israeli accounts describing him as the \u201cface of the alternative Iran\u201d. But he is not thought of in those terms by a majority of Iranians, many of whom have memories of his father\u2019s abuses and how the CIA restored him to power in 1953 in a United States-United Kingdom-orchestrated coup.<\/p>\n

Translation: I am sharing my first call with you today and invite you to start chanting slogans this Thursday and Friday, 18th and 19th of Dey, simultaneously at 8 PM, all of you whether in the streets or even from your own homes. Based on the feedback from this action, I will announce the next calls to you.<\/em><\/p>\n

Direct Israeli involvement<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The campaign was not limited to anonymous activists. It also involved direct participation from current and former Israeli officials during the campaign\u2019s peak.<\/p>\n

Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir posted a tweet in Persian addressed to the Iranian people, calling for the \u201cfall of the dictator\u201d and expressing support for the protests.<\/p>\n

Translation: The people of Iran deserve a free life, liberated from the killer dictator, Khamenei. We stand with you!<\/em><\/p>\n

Similarly, tweets by former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett were widely circulated within the hashtag\u2019s network, repurposed to fit the \u201cliberation\u201d narrative.<\/p>\n

Turning protests into an ideological war<\/strong><\/h2>\n

One of the campaign\u2019s most prominent features was its attempt to reframe the protests as a conflict against religion rather than against economic mismanagement and political repression.<\/p>\n

Posts describing the Iranian government as an \u201coppressive Islamist regime\u201d circulated alongside narratives portraying the \u201cPersian people\u201d as victims of Islam. This attempt to distinguish between \u201cPersians\u201d and \u201cMuslims\u201d appeared aimed at isolating the regime from Iranian society and framing the unrest as a civilizational clash.<\/p>\n

Israeli activists, including Eyal Yakoby and Hillel Neuer, also pushed content accusing the Iranian authorities of excessive violence while attacking what they termed the \u201csilence of international media\u201d.<\/p>\n

Calls for foreign intervention<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The discourse quickly evolved from solidarity to explicit calls for foreign military intervention. And this narrative was pushed by US President Donald Trump, who bombed Iran\u2019s nuclear sites as part of Israel\u2019s 12-day war against Iran in June.<\/p>\n

The network amplified statements attributed to Trump regarding Washington\u2019s readiness to intervene. Pahlavi publicly welcomed these statements, framing them as support for \u201cchange\u201d.<\/p>\n

Simultaneously, members of the US Congress, including Representative Pat Fallon, a member of Trump\u2019s Republican Party, further amplified these sentiments while dozens of accounts within the network directed tweets at Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, urging direct Israeli intervention.<\/p>\n

\"Tweet
Tweet Binder\u2019s timeline reveals activity peaks coinciding with intensive posting intervals [Al Jazeera]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The \u2018puppet masters\u2019 behind the network<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Al Jazeera\u2019s network analysis identified specific \u201ccentral nodes\u201d, or accounts that played a pivotal role in amplifying the hashtag.<\/p>\n

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  • \u201cRhythm of X\u201d:<\/strong> This account emerged as a central hub for interaction. Created in 2024, it has changed its handle five times. Its content focuses almost exclusively on supporting Israel, promoting the Iranian monarchy and calling for US action against Iran\u2019s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
    \"The
    The #FreeThePersianPeople hashtag is driven by external accounts acting as nodes in the dissemination network [Al Jazeera]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
      \n
    • \u201cNioh Berg\u201d:<\/strong> This verified account created in 2017 (which has also changed its name five times) identifies its user as a \u201cJewish Iranian activist\u201d. It presents her as a key voice in the movement and says she is wanted by Iranian authorities.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
      \"Network
      The network analysis exposes an Israeli fingerprint in trying to shape the narrative about the protests in Iran [Al Jazeera]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
        \n
      • \u201cIsrael War Room\u201d:<\/strong> The analysis shows a strong overlap between the \u201cNioh Berg\u201d network and the \u201cIsrael War Room\u201d account, which regularly disseminates security and political content aligned with Israeli state narratives.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
        \"The
        The network analysis reveals the digital campaign in support of the Iranian antigovernment protests did not originate organically from Iran [Al Jazeera]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

        Manufacturing a crisis<\/strong><\/h2>\n

        The investigation concludes that the #FreeThePersianPeople campaign was not a spontaneous digital expression of internal Iranian anger.<\/p>\n

        Instead, it appears to be a politicised information operation constructed outside Iran and led by networks linked to Israel and its allies. The campaign successfully hijacked legitimate economic grievances, reframing them within a broader political project that links the \u201cliberation of Iran\u201d to the return of the monarchy and foreign military intervention.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n


        <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        Transcendent moments in geopolitics that reverberate around the world are no longer just forged in the streets or inside situation rooms. They are increasingly engineered in the digital sphere, where actors, often with a self-serving agenda, compete to control the narrative, define its meaning and decide who speaks for whom. In recent weeks as protests […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8795,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8794","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-middle-east-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8794","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8794"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8794\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/8795"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8794"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8794"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8794"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}