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Iran Blames Foreign Influence, Social Media for Protest Violence

An Iranian representative claims recent protesters were educated from abroad and via social media on how to commit violence. He states Iran cut international internet access to restore societal peace, while maintaining local networks. The official blames over 250 enemy channels for propagating anti-Iran narratives to influence youth. Meanwhile, Iranian state TV has released an official death toll from the protest crackdown.

Key Points: Iran: Protesters Learnt Violence from Abroad via Social Media

  • Protesters educated from abroad
  • Social media used to teach violence
  • Iran cut international internet for peace
  • Deep gap between reality and online narrative
  • Official death toll from protests released
2 min read

"Protesters learnt violence from abroad, social media:" Iranian representative

Iran's representative claims protesters were educated abroad via social media to commit violence, justifying internet shutdowns to restore peace.

"They learn it, and they are educated... through social media. - Abdul Majid Hakeem Illahi"

New Delhi, January 24

Abdul Majid Hakeem Illahi, Representative of the Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Syed Ali Khamenei, in India, said that these Iranian protesters were educated from abroad and were active on social media.

Ilahi, in an interview with ANI, said that they learnt violence and killed innocent people.

"Actually, there are Iranian citizens. They learn it, and theyare educated. They are educated in abroad or even in Iran and they were educated also through social media. How they kill innocent people, how they burn hospital, how they burn mosque, how they burn library. These have come from they learned it and they educated they were educated through social media," he said.

Ilahi said that social media is not under government control, so it is difficult to control the anti-Iran narrative.

"Social media is not in any country or on the 100% under control of the government. It's very difficult and Iran has different situation because the enemies of Iran are a lot more than 250 channels 24/7 hours propagating against Iran and they want to teach Iranian youth and make them against the government," he said.

"Do you know majority of the people they were getting their lessons from abroad from some group in out of Iran- enemies of Iran," he said.

Ilahi added that Iran cut the internet off because they wanted peace.

"Iran decided to cut off the internet, international internet because we wanted to bring the peace in the society. We have local internet and it's working," he added.

Ilahi said that there is a deep divide between the reality on ground in Iran and the projected reality on social media.

"Concerning the situation in Iran? Actually we have two things which we have to divide and between them. The first one is the fact and the reality of the situation and the second one is imagination which made by narration of the journalist or by the enemies or by some other people. Actually there is very deep gap between these two realities. The one is fact, reality and the second one is imagination and analysis exists about the situation in Iran," he said.

Meanwhile, Iranian state television has released the first official death toll from the recent anti-government protests that engulfed the country, reporting that 3,117 people were killed during the crackdown, as reported by Al Jazeera.

- ANI

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Reader Comments

R
Rohit P
Cutting off the internet to "bring peace" is a dangerous precedent. We've seen similar arguments elsewhere. People have a right to information. If the reality on the ground is so different, why not let it speak for itself online?
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Aman W
As an Indian, I understand the challenge of foreign interference and narrative wars on social media. It's a real issue. But 3000+ deaths? That's not just a "gap in reality," that's a tragedy that needs accountability, not just blaming Twitter and Facebook.
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Sarah B
The representative's language about protesters "learning how to kill" from social media feels like dehumanization. It avoids the core issue: what sparked such widespread protests in the first place? The focus should be on dialogue.
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Vikram M
There's some truth to the social media point. We see fake news causing riots here in India too. But you can't shut down the internet every time. Governments need to build trust, not just control narratives. Iran's situation is a cautionary tale for all democracies.
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Kriti O
The interview sounds defensive. If 250 channels are against you 24/7, maybe ask why? The youth are the future of any nation. Alienating them and calling them educated by enemies is not a solution. Heart goes out to the ordinary people caught in this. 🙏

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