On 19 December 2023, the Jerusalem Post reported that an Iranian influence network has been actively trying to sow discord within Israeli society since 2021. Employing tactics like fake social media accounts, deepfakes, and the creation of fictitious social and political movements, this network has aimed to pit different Israeli groups against each other. The methods include posing as prominent rabbis, publishing anti-LGBTQ+ and anti-Haredi content, and forming fake dating groups that later injected political messages. In the past year, the focus shifted to the controversy around judicial reform in Israel, involving direct attempts to recruit activists to spread its content. Notably, during the Israel-Hamas conflict in October, the network spread conspiracy theories about traitors in Israel and infiltrated group chats of activists, particularly those advocating for the release of hostages. FakeReporter, a watchdog group, highlighted the increasing complexity of these foreign influence operations in Israel, warning of the challenges in countering such sophisticated tactics. The report concluded with an alert that additional operations by this Iranian network were discovered, urging the public to report any suspicious activities connected to it.
IranDecember 21 2023, 11:31 am
Iranian Influence Network Targets Israeli Society Through Social Media
RECENT
POPULAR
COMMENTS