Iran is using covert social media activity and related influence operations in an effort to undercut the candidacy of former President Donald Trump, a US intelligence official said Monday in an updated assessment of threats to the November election.
The US intelligence community has “observed Tehran working to influence the presidential election, probably because Iranian leaders want to avoid an outcome they perceive would increase tensions with the United States,” the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) said in a statement.
The recent Iranian influence activity has come in the form of “covert social media accounts and related activity,” the official from ODNI said at a media briefing when CNN asked for examples of the activity.
Iran’s preference for a US presidential candidate has not changed since 2020, the ODNI official said. In the 2020 election campaign, Iran “carried out a multi-pronged covert influence campaign intended to undercut former President Trump’s reelection prospects,” according to a declassified US intelligence report.
Russia’s preferences for the presidential race also haven’t shifted since 2020, when Moscow conducted a range of influence operations in support of Trump and aimed at denigrating Joe Biden, the ODNI official said.
“Iran does not engage in any objectives or activities intended to influence the U.S. election,” the Iranian Permanent Mission to the United Nations said in a statement to CNN. “A significant portion of such accusations are characterized by psychological operations designed to artificially pep up election campaigns.”
As president, Trump ordered the killing of top Iranian general Qasem Soleimani, and withdrew from a multilateral deal aimed at curbing Tehran’s nuclear program. Iran has…
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