Iranian media falsely claimed to injure “Israeli” in attack on Kurdish Region of Iraq. However, the “Israeli” was not present at the time of the attack, as confirmed in a conversation with the person in question. This is part of Iran’s attempts to portray their attacks as targeting Mossad or Israeli spies, despite the fact that the attack killed innocent people including a Dutch citizen.
Iran’s Tasnim News published misleading articles, one of which used an image of a rabbi to imply connections to Mossad, as part of an attempt to spread antisemitic tropes. The Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps carried out the attack on Erbil, as part of a wider campaign to destabilize the Kurdish region and undermine independent elements in the area. Iran has targeted the Kurdish region over the last several years using missiles and drones.
The decision by Iran to spread rumors about the attack indicates an attempt to bolster its case, despite the lack of evidence. The coordinated articles at Tasnim were designed to excuse Iran’s attack on Erbil by using random images to make it seem as if it had some legitimacy. This is an example of Iran’s propagandistic claims and attempts to spread misinformation.
