On the first day of the Middle East war, a scene in one of Tehran’s neighbourhoods brought a harsh, grounded reality into stark contrast with the inflated bubble of war propaganda, bursting it like a balloon. A terrified, panicked girl ran towards her home. When she found her mother safe, she anxiously asked, “Why did they hit the residential areas?”

This simple question revealed that the war propaganda had led her to believe that the “liberating” forces of the United States and Israel would arrive responsibly and with calculated precision, targeting only military centres and the political and military authorities of the regime, while sparing the people of Iran from the yoke of the “mullahs”; that in this so-called liberation operation, civilians would remain unharmed.

Apparently, the reinforcements that were supposed to arrive had now seemingly reached; yet the reality before her eyes was entirely different: the same so-called “liberating forces” were not only bombing the military centres of the shameful Islamic bourgeoisie—or, in the language of the Western bourgeoisie and their proxy forces, the “mullahs”—but were also targeting residential areas and massacring civilians.

Every imperialist war is accompanied by a wide-ranging campaign of lies, hypocrisy, and deceit, designed to ensure that workers are not only prevented from protesting but are even compelled to make sacrifices in pursuit of bourgeois objectives. In other words, the war does not exist solely at a military level; more acutely, the filthy propaganda of war is underway, poisoning the global working class.

Although Donald Trump and his Secretary of Defence speak in a harsh, almost gangster-like language, the Western bourgeois propaganda machinery—despite internal disagreements arising from differing imperialist interests—has launched a vast and insidious campaign to poison the working class and manipulate public opinion. Thanks to its extensive resources and the framework of bourgeois democracy in these countries, this machinery has been able to advance its propaganda objectives effectively.

Official Western journalism generally reproduces what this democracy is intended to present to its citizens. The propaganda of bourgeois democracy, relying on abundant resources and sophisticated tools for shaping public opinion, is far more effective in promoting war propaganda; its lies are bigger, more complex, and more convincing.[1]

Owing to its extensive resources and the comprehensive support of Western countries and allies, Israel is able to influence public opinion more effectively in line with its imperialist interests—whether within Israel itself, in Western countries, or even inside Iran. This ability relies on a vast network of media outlets, propaganda institutions, and modern communication tools, which make it possible to shape narratives and frame news coverage.

In this way, imperialist objectives are advanced not only on the battlefield but also in the minds and consciousness of the masses, thereby laying the groundwork for their legitimisation.

The propaganda machinery of the Islamic bourgeoisie and its supporters, although not comparable in resources or reach to the United States, Israel, and other Western countries, nevertheless seeks to present its own narrative of the war and its objectives. In this narrative, its actions are portrayed as “resistance” against imperialism and its allies, as well as an effort to expel American imperialism from the Middle East.

It was in this context that the war-mongering Trump, as part of psychological warfare, ruled out any possibility of an agreement with the criminal rulers of Iran, stating that there would be no deal to end the war and that the only option available was Iran’s unconditional surrender. He probably knew himself that these statements were part of war propaganda and aimed at advancing military objectives; after all, he had previously expressed a similar stance during the twelve-day war in June of the previous year. In any case, Trump said:

“There would be no ​deal struck with ​Iran except unconditional surrender.”[2]

As hopes for the collapse of the Islamic bourgeoisie as a result of the Middle East war began to fade, the criminal Netanyahu, as part of the propaganda war and in pursuit of his imperialist objectives, assumed the role of a “liberator”[3], declaring that “help has arrived” and that the necessary conditions for a change of the despotic regime had been established. He called on the people of Iran to rise up, claiming that the moment of freedom had come and that they should complete the unfinished task of overthrow.

“Don’t miss the opportunity. This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity. Soon your moment will come. The moment when you must take to the streets in your masses, to take to the streets to complete the work to bring down the regime of horrors that embitters your lives.”[4]

We have previously explained that the situation in Iran is not comparable to that of Syria, Venezuela, or other countries, and that any action against Iran could lead to the spread of chaos across the region, with consequences that may also be global. The course of recent events has clearly confirmed the validity of the arguments and assessments of the communist left, demonstrating the accuracy of their analyses.[5]

One of the main reasons why the Islamic bourgeoisie has not collapsed is its ideological character; it has sought to draw lessons from the twelve-day war and from the street protests of recent years. An undeniable reality exists: there is widespread dissatisfaction with the disgraceful Islamic bourgeoisie within society. However, since this discontent is general and cross-class, it can easily be exploited by reactionary forces or turned into a tool in the tensions between bourgeois factions.

With the outbreak of the Middle East war, both the United States and Israel, along with their proxy forces, as well as the disgraceful Islamic bourgeoisie itself, took this discontent into account. On this basis, the Islamic bourgeoisie, as soon as the war began, sought—drawing on the experience it had acquired—to strengthen ideological and nationalist elements.

From the outset, the Islamic bourgeoisie declared that the military battlefield belonged to the armed forces in defence of the “revolution” (in reality, the counter-revolution), while the rear—the streets—belonged to the people. Just as the armed forces are expected to hold the battlefield, the people, too, are obliged to control the streets. As a result, from the very first days, supporters of the regime have gathered each night in the main squares of cities—and in Tehran, in squares across various districts—to prevent any anti-war protests from emerging.[6] By raising the national flag, chanting slogans, and singing military songs, they sustain an atmosphere of fervour and support for the bourgeois rulers.

Alongside these measures, the Islamic bourgeoisie has declared wartime conditions and the corresponding laws within society; any support, dissemination of news, or reporting in violation of these laws is subject to legal action under wartime regulations. In recent days, hundreds of people have been arrested for sending news or reports, particularly to television stations, websites, and channels sympathetic to the Western bourgeoisie, Israel, and its proxy forces. Since the actions of such individuals are not aligned with revolutionary aims and merely reflect public dissatisfaction that can be exploited by reactionary forces, the moment they are arrested, their illusions collapse, leaving them confronted with frustration.

Furthermore, the Islamic bourgeoisie has revived certain unwritten laws that were enforced in 1981. In other words, anyone who observes the slightest “counter-revolutionary” activity, or suspects the presence of “counter-revolutionary” elements, is obliged to report it; effectively, citizens of society are turned into spies for the regime.

The Islamic bourgeoisie also issues threats to its enemies and sounds the war trumpet. The anti-revolutionary Revolutionary Guards declare that the war will only end when the enemy is completely defeated, and all their focus is directed towards the enemy’s total surrender. In this context, they state:

“We are thinking only of the enemy’s complete surrender. We will end the war only when the shadow of war is lifted from the country.”[7]

The Islamic bourgeoisie has declared that the Middle East war must lead to the withdrawal of the United States from the region. In this context, one of the senior commanders of the Islamic bourgeoisie’s military also resorted to war propaganda, stating that, in fact, the Middle East war is aimed at changing the global order, and that afterwards the world order will undergo a transformation. In other words, the United States will no longer hold its former position:

“After this war, the global order will change, and the United States will no longer occupy the position it held before this war.”[8]

There is speculation that the United States, Israel, and the Gulf states do not report their casualties accurately in order to make the losses appear smaller, prevent public morale from being affected, and avoid fostering anti-war sentiment.

In contrast, the Islamic bourgeoisie seeks not only to announce all deaths but also to present them in a way that emphasises victimhood, suggesting that the casualties were caused by imperialism, oppressors, and their supporters. Funerals for the dead are turned into a carnival serving the imperialist war and the ruling class; in other words, even the dead become a propaganda tool in the service of the ruling class during an imperialist war.

In line with such war propaganda, the Islamic bourgeoisie presents itself as the defender of the oppressed, inscribing the names of victims—particularly children—on the missiles that are fired; under slogans such as “Revenge for the Martyred Children,” or other propaganda like “Revenge for Rachel Corrie[9],” “Revenge for the Victims of Epstein Island,” “Thanks to the Prime Minister of Spain,” and so on.

Iraq is one of the fronts where the proxy forces of the Islamic bourgeoisie have been able to perform more effectively in a defensive role on behalf of the Islamic bourgeoisie. Militarily, NATO forces have withdrawn from Iraq and relocated their operations to Naples, Italy. Meanwhile, United States forces stationed at bases in Iraqi Kurdistan and near Baghdad Airport have been heavily targeted. Iranian proxy forces in Iraq have also claimed that they have attacked US bases in Jordan and Syria from Iraqi territory.

From a propaganda perspective, Iran’s proxy forces symbolically placed posters of the deceased scoundrel Supreme Leader in hundreds of streets across Baghdad. Similarly, the mural in Baghdad’s Firdous Square—regarded as a symbolic space reflecting Iraq’s political and social changes—was adorned with a quote from a slain commander of the Popular Mobilisation Forces:

“There will be no security for them anymore; by God, we will leave none of them alive.”

In other words, the scope of military and political tensions in Iraq has expanded dramatically, and chaos is accelerating. Even after a potential ceasefire, this disorder and these tensions are likely to persist and continue to affect the region.

Propaganda warfare is taking place in the cyber domain more intensely than in any other area. Cyber propaganda and operations are an integral part of the war, and all parties use them as part of their military campaigns. In this context, the Islamic bourgeoisie’s cyber forces were able to send a text message to the mobile phones of Israeli citizens, which read:

“America’s latest radar systems in the region have been destroyed. Your government leaders are lying to you. Leave the country. Missiles are on their way to you. No shelter can guarantee your safety.”

Another form of war propaganda by the Islamic bourgeoisie, which is widely promoted both in official media such as newspapers and television and on social media, concerns the demand for reparations from the “aggressors.” In numerous television programmes, the issue of claiming compensation from the United States and the Gulf states has been discussed.

Furthermore, the ambassador and representative of the Islamic bourgeoisie at the den of thieves (the United Nations) sent a letter to the Secretary-General and the President of the Security Council, accusing the United Arab Emirates of allowing its territory to be used for US attacks against Iran. According to his statements, the UAE’s international violations require compensation, including reparations for all material and moral damage inflicted on Iran.[10]

In 2024, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for the Russian Defence Minister and the Chief of the General Staff due to attacks on Ukraine’s power infrastructure.[11] Recently, Trump also warned that if Iran does not reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours, the United States military would begin attacking Iran’s power plants. In this context, BBC journalist Tom Bateman asked Luis Moreno Ocampo whether, given previous rulings, a similar warrant should not be issued against Trump if this threat were carried out.

Raising such a question reflects a disregard for the true nature of institutions like the International Criminal Court and forms part of war propaganda. In practice, the court serves as a tool for imperialist powers to exert pressure on their rivals within the framework of global tensions. Within this context, glaring contradictions become evident: how can Benjamin Netanyahu be pursued as a war criminal while simultaneously receiving political and military support from the same powers that stand behind these institutions?

This is neither a contradiction nor an exception; rather, it reflects the true nature of the imperialist order and its dependent legal institutions. From the perspective of the communist left, not only is there no illusion regarding the neutrality of these institutions, but it is also emphasised that bourgeois judicial bodies are part of the mechanisms of the capitalist state and ultimately act in opposition to the interests of the working class.

In line with war propaganda and the engineering of public opinion, Trump gathered a group of priests from across the country in the Oval Office to hold prayer ceremonies for his victory in the imperialist war. This scene is not merely a tragicomic spectacle; it is a reflection of the current state of capitalism, where the world’s foremost economic and military power resorts, in a quasi-sectarian manner, to rituals of prayer and worship.

Within this framework, religion and religious institutions are employed as ideological tools in the service of war and power. It appears that theology, priests, and concepts of sanctity have been summoned to aid a warmonger, providing moral and spiritual legitimacy for killing and warfare. It is as if Jesus Christ is signing a sacred licence for war, while angels oversee its execution to ensure that everything proceeds within a “holy” framework.

This exaggerated image, in fact, illustrates how even religious concepts and sacred figures are turned into instruments of capitalist war propaganda; by adding a semblance of “heavenly blessing,” conventional imperialist policies can be pursued with greater intensity and speed. In this context, prayer and worship themselves become a form of ideological fuel for the US imperialist war machine. At that ceremony, they pray as follows:

“I pray for your grace and your protection over him. We pray for all of our men and women serving in our armed forces. And Father we just pray you’ll continue to give our President the strength that he needs to lead our great nation as we come back to one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. We pray your heavenly blessing upon him in Jesus’ name. Amen.”[12]

The war propaganda of criminals, regardless of which side they belong to, can sometimes become so absurd, manipulative, and hypocritical that it even draws criticism from bourgeois media. It is in this context that The Economist, adopting a sarcastic tone, addresses Donald Trump and writes:

“Although Donald Trump says he has destroyed 100% of Iran’s Military Capability, the 0% that apparently remains is playing havoc with the global economy by choking off 10-15% of its oil supply.”[13]

War criminals in the realm of propaganda strive to outdo one another with absurd and manipulative displays. In this propaganda competition, each side seeks to make its own narrative appear more prominent and influential. Within this framework, Ahmad Reza Radan, Commander-in-Chief of the Islamic bourgeoisie’s Law Enforcement Force, who has played a key role in suppressing opponents, addressed the European Union with a sarcastic tone during one of the nightly pro-government gatherings held at Vali Asr Square in Tehran, saying:

“If you don’t have the guts to hold onto Greenland, just ask us to come!”[14]

Without war propaganda, without the dissemination of war narratives, and without poisoning the working class, the continuation of imperialist wars would be impossible. War does not unfold solely on the battlefield; it is simultaneously waged in the realm of consciousness. The bourgeoisie, regardless of which side it belongs to, seeks to poison the minds of the working class, presenting the conditions of war as “inevitable,” “defensive,” or even “necessary.” The aim of this propaganda is to neutralise any resistance and to prevent the emergence of class-based protests against the war.

Within this framework, all war criminals are well aware of the historical potential of the working class. Historical experience has shown that only the working class, through its independent engagement, is capable of disrupting the capitalist war machine and bringing the war to an end. For this reason, the ruling classes, by creating intellectual confusion, fostering division, and reproducing ideological illusions, strive to prevent this sleeping giant from awakening.

From the perspective of the communist left, which has always opposed imperialist wars, war propaganda is not a secondary tool but an integral part of imperialist war itself—a means of controlling class consciousness and ensuring the continuation of a system founded on exploitation, war, and barbarism. This propaganda, with its fabricated notions such as “national unity,” “external enemies,” and “defensive necessity” in place of class identity, serves no purpose other than to poison class consciousness and incorporate the proletariat into the bourgeois project. In this process, the worker becomes atomised and subordinated to the imperialist war—a subject acting against the historical interests of the working class.

War propaganda conceals the fundamental contradiction between labour and capital, replacing it with false national antagonisms. For this reason, the war is simultaneously a war against proletarian class consciousness and against the working class itself. Only through an internationalist stance and independent reliance on class struggle can war propaganda be countered. By exposing the class interests hidden behind this propaganda, it can be turned into a weapon against the bourgeoisie itself and become a moment for the reconstruction of class consciousness against the entire bourgeois order.

Therefore, the proletarian response to war propaganda and imperialist war is a struggle against capital itself—a struggle that can only lead to genuine liberation on a global, internationalist horizon.

War Propaganda Is the Bourgeoisie’s Weapon;

Class Consciousness Is the Proletariat’s!

Long Live the War Between the Classes!

F.A.

25 March 2026

Notes:

[1]The propaganda apparatus and bourgeois media play a key role in advancing bourgeois strategies. By shaping and directing public opinion, these apparatuses lay the necessary social and psychological groundwork in advance, enabling the political and military machinery of the bourgeoisie to pursue its objectives more easily and effectively. For example, following the defeat of the German Revolution after 1919, at the heart of Europe, the propaganda and media machinery first prepared and aligned public opinion by justifying violence, killings, and repression. Then, relying on this pre-prepared groundwork, the repressive apparatus carried out the actual massacres and the elimination of workers and revolutionaries. In other words, in capitalist society, propaganda and the media have been an active part of the process of exercising power and repression—a process in which legitimising violence serves as the necessary prelude to its execution.

[2] Reuters.

[3] Netanyahu, who is accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity, presents himself as a “liberator”. This is despite the fact that the International Criminal Court has issued an official arrest warrant against him. In reality, this warrant is the product of internal tensions among bourgeois factions and serves as a means of mutual pressure between them. Netanyahu’s aircraft has repeatedly passed through the airspace of France, Italy, Greece, and other countries, even though these states are parties to the Rome Statute and are, in legal terms, bound by the arrest warrant. In other words, this warrant is less an operational measure than a symbolic one, forming part of the propaganda struggle within inter-bourgeois tensions; in practice, no country is capable of arresting Netanyahu.

[4] The Times of Israel.

[5] For a deeper understanding of the assessments and arguments from the perspective of left communism, reading the two texts below is recommended. It is important to note that both were written prior to the outbreak of the Middle East war:

• Bloody Repression and Bourgeois Alternatives as Instruments of Defeat; The Necessity of Independent and Internationalist Working-Class Struggle
• Submission or War? Capitalism and the Tendency Towards Generalised Imperialist War, and the Internationalist Response

[6] It must be emphasised that any external attack typically strengthens feelings of patriotism within a society, and this holds true in the case of the Middle East war as well. For this reason, those gathered are not limited to supporters of the regime; individuals who are critical of or opposed to it can also be seen among them. Even some of those who had been living abroad have returned to Iran to defend the imperialist homeland, and the propaganda apparatus of the Islamic Republic, in line with its objectives, highlights and amplifies their interviews.

[7] AgahNews.

[8] Vista.

[9]Rachel Corrie was an American peace activist who was killed in 2003 in the Gaza Strip while attempting to prevent the demolition of Palestinian homes.

[10] Ilna.

[11]The Guardian.

[12] Prayers were offered for Donald Trump in the Oval Office, asking for his success in the war.

[13] The Economist.

[14] FarsNews.

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