Khamenei: We are facing a media war; do not abandon the government

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, warned on Thursday, September 6, during a meeting with the head and representatives of the Assembly of Experts, about a "media war" that he claims has intensified due to the United States and Israel "with financial support" from wealthy individuals in neighboring countries. He emphasized that the "virus of skepticism towards the government, parliament, judiciary, and revolutionary institutions is harmful," stating that the solution to the country's problems is not to abandon the government or express disapproval of the responsible institutions, but rather to create a healthy relationship between public opinion and responsible bodies, to speak and criticize, while also providing intellectual and practical assistance. He stressed the need to see both the positive and negative aspects of the government and other institutions together, stating that "people's trust in governmental, judicial, and military institutions should not be undermined." In recent months, as U.S. pressure has intensified and the economic situation in Iran has worsened, some officials of the Islamic Republic have directed multiple attacks against President Hassan Rouhani's government, leading to the impeachment and dismissal of some of his cabinet ministers. Groups within the Islamic Republic have also spoken about the inefficiency of the government's economic team and expressed concern about the possibility of Rouhani negotiating with the U.S. president to ease sanctions. In this context, Ahmad Jannati, the head of the Assembly of Experts, recently spoke about the potential meeting between the Iranian president and his American counterpart, Donald Trump, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, a topic that Mahmoud Vaezi, Rouhani's chief of staff, dismissed as "baseless." On Thursday, Khamenei referred to the concerns of these groups within the Islamic Republic's officials, stating, "Our duty is to guide the government officials towards using expert opinions and solving problems and to instill optimism in the people regarding their efforts, as in such a case, the knots of public opinion will be untied." He added, "My private meetings with government, judicial, and military officials are ten times more than public and media meetings, and in these meetings, various issues are discussed that the public is not aware of." The leader of the Islamic Republic emphasized, "Fighting is not the way to reform, just as creating parallel organizations and work with the government will not be beneficial or successful, and experience has proven that work must be done by the responsible officials through legal channels." Warning about the "media war supported by the wealthy in the region," Khamenei said: "Based on the information we have, the intelligence agencies of the U.S. and the Zionist regime, with the financial support of the wealthy in the neighboring countries, have established an organization for this media war and are seriously planning and trying to pollute the advertising and intellectual atmosphere of society." He did not provide further details about the wealthy individuals in the region and the countries in question. Since the escalation of the Islamic Republic's regional rivalry with Saudi Arabia, reports have emerged about the launch of some Persian versions of websites related to Saudi Arabia. Three years ago, Adel Al-Turaifi, the young Saudi Minister of Culture and Information, who is referred to as a specialist in Tehran-Riyadh relations in the Saudi Kingdom, emphasized that Riyadh's activities in public diplomacy were insufficient and that more efforts should be made to provide accurate information and describe Saudi society to Iranians in their own language. Khamenei continued on Thursday, stating, "Today, the Islamic system is facing a comprehensive economic war that is being directed from a war room with complete precision and attention, but alongside this war, an important media and propaganda war is also underway that is often neglected." He did not elaborate on this "war room" but added that "this media war has existed before but has intensified now," stating, "The goals of this media war are to create anxiety, despair, hopelessness, and a sense of deadlock and to make people skeptical of one another and of the responsible institutions, as well as to exaggerate and amplify economic problems in the minds of society." Khamenei further stated, "In the same issues related to coins and currency and the depreciation of the national currency, the media war and the propaganda efforts of the malevolent have been influential, and of course, we do not expect anything but malice from the enemy, but we must be careful not to assist these efforts to pollute people's minds." In recent weeks, the value of the Iranian national currency has sharply decreased, placing an additional financial burden on citizens. This, along with various political and economic issues, has led to social unrest and multiple protests in recent months, which have faced government repression. Nevertheless, the leader of the Islamic Republic commented in another part of his speech on Thursday that "the country is progressing" and added, "We say with precise information that the country is moving towards revolutionary concepts, ideals, and truths, although the speed of movement may not be as expected, but the system is advancing in various scientific, industrial, political dignity, intellectual, and spiritual growth, and good progress has been made."