The Iranian regime has become more aggressive in seeking to sow discord inside the United States, according to Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, who warned that Tehran-linked actors were found to have encouraged anti-Israel protests and even provided financial support to demonstrators.
Ms. Haines issued the warning in a July 9 statement, noting that this was the first of a series of regular intelligence communications about various types of foreign malign activities as well as election security threats.
“We urge all Americans to remain vigilant,” she said, singling out people who engage with online accounts and individuals that they don’t know personally.
In May, the national intelligence chief told Congress that Iranian efforts to undermine the political debate in the United States were becoming increasingly aggressive, warning that Iranian intelligence services were involved, having evolved their cyber and influence activities to exploit social media platforms to stoke discord.
She said at the time that it appeared likely that Iranian actors, including Iran-based online influencers, would keep looking for ways to sow division in the United States ahead of the November election. According to Ms. Haines’ July 9 warning, current intelligence indicates this has now come to pass.
“In recent weeks, Iranian government actors have sought to opportunistically take advantage of ongoing protests regarding the war in Gaza, using a playbook we’ve seen other actors use over the years,” she said. “We have observed actors tied to Iran’s government posing as activists online, seeking to encourage protests, and even providing financial support to protesters.”
Ms. Haines stated that Americans participating in protests have been expressing their views on the conflict in Gaza in good faith. She said the freedom to publicly express opinions is a core American value and essential to the democratic process, as long as it is done peacefully.
“But it is also important to warn of foreign actors who seek to exploit our debate for their own purposes,” she said. “Furthermore, Americans who are being targeted by this Iranian campaign may not be aware that they are interacting with or receiving support from a foreign government.”
The U.S. intelligence chief said Iran-linked actors were adapting their malign foreign influence activities and, much like she told Congress in May, she believes it’s likely they will continue to rely on their intelligence services and online influences to push certain narratives.
Protests on college campuses over Israel’s military response to the Hamas terror attacks spread across the United States in recent months. Tensions seemed to hit a boiling point in April, with clashes between protesters and counter-protesters and police moving in to clear a number of encampments.
Some school administrators called local law enforcement in response to sit-ins, while others have let them operate or struck deals to dismantle the tent camps.
President Joe Biden has said that protesters have the right to demonstrate but not to resort to violence.
Former President Donald Trump has been critical of the campus encampments and praised law enforcement for clearing them.