TEHRAN -- Iranian Armed Forces spokesman Brigadier General Abolfazl Shekarchi on Wednesday warned that hostile Persian-language media networks could be placed on Iran’s military target lists, describing them as “soldiers of Zionism and criminal America.”
Speaking at a ceremony here to unveil the international pages of the Defense Press news agency in English, Arabic, Russian, Urdu, French and Turkish, Shekarchi said success or failure on the media front could directly affect the outcome of a military confrontation.
He said the “center of gravity” of the hostile media apparatus is controlled by Israel, stating that Persian-language outlets including BBC Persian, Iran International and Radio Farda are directly linked to the Mossad, CIA and other intelligence agencies and receive guidance and support from them.
“These media outlets are considered soldiers of Zionism and criminal America, and they can even be placed on military target lists, because in our view, these are not media outlets,” Shekarchi said.
The Iranian military spokesman said Iran’s adversaries have access to the latest tools and advanced media technologies and have made extensive financial investments in the sector. However, he said the Islamic Republic’s media will ultimately prevail over them with “divine providence.”
Shekarchi also said media organizations should contribute to security and protect the psychological well-being of societies, accusing hostile networks of instead promoting violence around the world.
Last month, Iran’s courts indicted more than 300 individuals linked to anti-Iran media networks as part of a campaign aimed at protecting national security.
Prosecutor General Muhammad Movahedi Azad said the cases involved individuals associated with outlets including Iran International and Manoto. He said the judiciary will continue pursuing legal action against those involved through both domestic and international legal channels.