One key tool Washington has long utilized for influence operations and covert regime change plotting abroad has long been the establishment of foreign media for political messaging.
The idea is that a foreign language satellite news channel gets presented as 'independent' while in reality it beams propaganda onto a unsuspecting population within a so-called 'rogue' state being targeted by the US.
For example, WikiLeaks previously revealed that US intelligence invested heavily in such projects to bolster anti-Assad forces and sentiment in the context of last decade's proxy war in Syria.
Currently, Iran says it is fully aware of several Persian-language media outlets which are subversive, given they have the backing of the US, UK, or Israeli governments, or others like Saudi Arabia.
The AFP in a Wednesday report has said Iranian state media has newly called out the following as hostile propaganda media fronts:
- BBC Persian
- Iran International
- Radio Farda
An Iranian military spokesman has said these have been added to the armed forces' "military target bank" - putting the outlets on notice that their offices and infrastructure could come under attack.
"These hostile media outlets are the soldiers of Zionism and America and are included in our military target bank," military spokesman Abolfazl Shekarchi announced.
He charged that they are "directly connected to Mossad, CIA and enemy intelligence organizations." He emphasized: "The Iranian Armed Forces do not view these news outlets as media."
And interestingly, per AFP: "Iran has designated Iran International as a terrorist organization since 2022 and has warned that cooperation with the channel is punishable under Iranian law."
Earlier in the Iran war, we featured analysis which pointed out that Iran International calls itself the "most popular Persian speaking foreign based news channel in Iran".It employs 700 people and broadcasts into Iran from London via satellite, radio and social media outlets.
Iran International has been accused by critics of promoting “regime change” in Iran and advancing the position of the former shah’s son, Reza Pahlavi, for a return to power. The outlet has long denied links to Israel or Saudi Arabia. The outlet reported heavily on protests that struck Iran at the beginning of this year, sparked by a cost-of-living crisis brought on, in part, by US sanctions.
In January 2025, the news site reported that more than 36,500 people were killed in a crackdown on protests. Those numbers were significantly higher than those estimated by the US and other western-based human rights groups.
US President Donald Trump cited casualty numbers similar to those reported by Iran International days before launching a war on Iran on February 28, but did not disclose where he had gotten the death toll number.