In the waning days of 2025, as Iran's streets pulsed with the raw energy of mass discontent, a chilling digital whisper cut through the chaos. From the official X account of Israel's Mossad, a message in flawless Farsi emerged: "Go out together into the streets. The time has come. We are with you. Not only from a distance and verbally. We are with you in the field." This wasn't a mere show of solidarity; it was a brazen declaration of presence, a spy agency's open admission of boots on the ground amid foreign unrest. The Jerusalem Post amplified it swiftly, quoting the lines that urged Iranians to rise and implied Mossad agents were marching alongside them. Such an act reeks of hubris, a grotesque overreach that shatters the facade of diplomatic restraint and thrusts intelligence operations into the public eye. But this incident is no anomaly—it's the visible tip of a doctrine reshaping geopolitical strife across the region, where foreign powers exploit genuine grievances to orchestrate escalation, contamination, and collapse.As an investigative reporter delving into the undercurrents of Middle Eastern power plays, I've tracked how intelligence agencies like Mossad, often in tandem with allies such as the CIA, weave themselves into the fabric of domestic upheavals. This isn't about abstract theories; it's about piecing together patterns from declassified documents, eyewitness accounts, and on-the-ground realities. In Iran, the protests erupted against a backdrop of economic ruin: the rial plummeting to 1.42-1.47 million per U.S. dollar by late December 2025, inflation surging to 42-48.6%, and food prices skyrocketing 72% year-over-year. Shopkeepers in Tehran shuttered their stores, sparking nationwide fury over unaffordable necessities. Into this tinderbox, Mossad inserted itself, not covertly, but with a public call to arms that amplified psychological pressure on Tehran's regime.This tactic signals a profound shift in statecraft—one I term "public intelligence messaging." Traditional espionage lurks in shadows; this new model steps into the spotlight, addressing foreign populations directly in their language during live crises, claiming proximity and identity as operatives. It's psychological warfare unmasked, designed not for subtle influence but for overt provocation. The consequences? A scripted spiral: regimes crack down harder, protests lose legitimacy as "foreign plots," and civilians bear the brunt. Iran's authorities, already battered by U.S. sanctions reimposed via the UN snapback in September 2025, saw Mossad's message as confirmation of infiltration. Mass arrests, internet blackouts, and violent dispersals followed, mirroring a playbook seen across the region.To understand this doctrine's roots, we must rewind to the post-Cold War order, where the U.S. and Israel positioned themselves as architects of a Middle East where popular sovereignty is often secondary to strategic dominance. Palestine stands as the archetype: denied full statehood since the Balfour Declaration's embedding in the British Mandate, it anchors a system of asymmetry favoring Israeli military supremacy. Preventing cohesive resistance coalitions—whether in Iran, Syria, or beyond—becomes paramount. Mossad's Farsi overture fits this logic: exploit economic despair to destabilize a key adversary, all while insulating interveners from fallout.The Tinderbox: Iran's Economic Collapse and Protest SparkIran's unrest didn't ignite in a vacuum. By late 2025, the economy was in freefall. The rial, once a symbol of stability, hit record lows at 1.47 million to the dollar in early January 2026, following sharp swings from December. Inflation, officially at 42.2% in December but cited as high as 52% by some sources, eroded household budgets. Food prices jumped 72%, health items 50%, pushing poverty rates to 22-50% of the population. This wasn't mere misfortune; U.S. sanctions, intensified post-snapback, were the primary driver, choking oil exports and foreign exchange. Systemic energy crises compounded the misery, with blackouts routine.Protests began organically: shopkeepers in Tehran closing in late December over currency volatility, spreading to students, workers, and families nationwide. Grievances were real—unemployment, corruption, inequality—but the movement's scale invited exploitation. Enter Mossad's December 29 post, urging collective street action and claiming agents' presence. Amplified by i24NEWS and Instagram, it reached global audiences, framing the unrest as externally backed. Iran's Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi accused Mossad and U.S. of fueling "terrorist acts," citing Pompeo's posts and infiltration evidence.This insertion wasn't novel for Mossad, versed in covert actions like assassinations and sabotage. But publicizing it marked escalation, signaling penetration to demoralize the regime while encouraging riskier protester behavior. As one Tehran resident told reporters amid blackouts, "We know foreign hands are stirring, but our pain is homegrown." The blend of authentic fury and external meddling creates a toxic mix, where legitimacy erodes.Defining Public Intelligence Messaging: From Covert to OvertPublic intelligence messaging upends traditional statecraft's duality: propaganda for masses, covert ops for elites. Here, agencies abandon deniability, broadcasting involvement to foreign publics during crises. Mossad's Farsi account exemplifies this—direct, linguistic immersion, timed to volatility. It's escalation theater: assert penetration, embolden crowds, provoke overreactions.Historically, influence flowed via propaganda (Voice of America broadcasts) or secret interventions (CIA's 1953 Operation Ajax in Iran, overthrowing Mossadegh). Both preserved plausible deniability, shielding movements from "puppet" labels. This new model demolishes that, contaminating protests. Purpose? Not persuasion, but destabilization. Regimes gain pretexts for repression; movements fracture under suspicion.In Iran, it played out predictably. Authorities, citing Mossad's message as "foreign incitement," unleashed securitized responses: arrests numbering thousands, internet shutdowns lasting days, crowd violence. Protests, once economic, morphed into geopolitical spectacles, legitimacy undermined. Civilians paid: reports of "hober af lig" (piles of bodies) in hospitals, with regime sources admitting thousands dead amid blackouts.The Rigid Script: Consequences and Regime ResponsesThe fallout follows a blueprint. External "support" exposes movements, justifying crackdowns. Iran's history amplifies this: post-1979 Revolution, external pressures like sanctions fueled paranoia. The 2025 snapback, reimposing pre-JCPOA curbs, cratered the rial further. Mossad's intervention confirmed "Zionist plots," per state media, enabling mass detentions.Echoes in Venezuela: 2025 saw the bolívar lose 80% value, inflation at 254-590%, black-market gaps widening. Protests erupted over hardship; Maduro framed opposition as "Zionist vehicles" alongside U.S. sanctions and alleged CIA strikes. Military deployments, detentions mirrored Iran's script. No cost to interveners; societies absorb damage.Comparative Carnage: Patterns Across the RegionThis mechanism recurs regionally, Mossad's message illuminating a system. Syria's 2011 uprising, sparked by reform demands, devolved into proxy war. U.S. CIA armed rebels via Timber Sycamore; Saudi, Turkish support flowed. Iran, Russia backed Assad. Popular revolt became catastrophe: millions displaced, regime change in 2024 left humanitarian scars.Iraq's 2019 Tishreen movement—youth-led against corruption, unemployment, foreign domination—faced lethal repression post-infiltration. Israeli, U.S. operations contaminated space; Iran-backed militias cracked down. Over 600 killed, thousands injured; legitimacy lost as "foreign conspiracy."Yemen's fractures: Internal conflict escalated via Saudi-Emirati coalition (2015 intervention), Houthis Iranian-backed. 2025 saw UAE-supported STC clash with Saudi-aligned PLC in Hadramawt, Mahra. Mass displacement, hunger; intelligence coordination turned domestic rifts into proxy wars.Lebanon's 2023-2024 war with Israel compounded economic collapse (GDP halved since 2018, poverty tripled). Israeli strikes destroyed 90,000 structures, displaced 1.2 million; U.S.-backed demands suffocated politics. Authentic movements collide with agendas, yielding exhaustion.The Governing Logic: U.S.-Israel Architecture and Palestinian CornerstoneThis cycle stems from post-Cold War asymmetry: U.S.-Israel treat Arab/Persian sovereignty as disposable. Palestine's denied statehood—Balfour's legacy—enables prevention of constraining coalitions. Instrumentalizing movements serves this: destabilize Iran to curb resistance.Jerusalem Post's amplification? Extends psyops: projects penetration, boosts Israeli morale, exploits grievances while civilians suffer.Conclusion: From Chutzpah to Doctrine—The Machine of Modern EmpireMossad's obscene chutzpah resolves into doctrine: calculated, unaccountable, devastating. "Support" converts hope to collateral, movements to pawns. Modern empire contaminates dissent, watching repression follow.Yet, glimmers: Iran's protesters persist despite interference. True sovereignty demands rejecting this machine—externally and internally. As one Venezuelan activist noted amid 2025 turmoil, "We absorb the damage, but our resolve endures." The region deserves better than scripted despair.
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