Iran's covert influence network targets Western policymakers and media

Iran’s strategy goes beyond missiles to a sophisticated influence operation that mobilises state media, intelligence officers, diplomats, lobbyists, scholars and social-media personalities to mould Western views of the Islamic Republic. The piece cites roughly 400 foreign bloggers, including British influencer Bushra Shaikh and American commentator Jackson Hinkle, who were taken to Tehran for the supreme leader’s funeral, and the detention of former Iranian state media official Bashir Biazar in France on accusations of acting as an influence agent.

It also references the “Iran Experts Initiative,” linking Iranian officials with Western academics such as Ellie Geranmayeh and Rouzbeh Parsi, and the suspension of European Parliament adviser Eldar Mamedov amid foreign-interference allegations. Earlier claims that Anne Singleton (now Khodabandeh) was recruited by Iranian intelligence are noted, underscoring verification challenges. The article argues that Western democracies have focused on physical threats while neglecting this intellectual influence network, urging transparent political trips, stricter foreign-influence registration and impartial probes. Ultimately, it warns that allowing an authoritarian regime to shape policy debates erodes democratic decision-making.