Russia and Iran may try to incite postelection violence, intelligence officials warn
Russia and Iran may try to incite violence or disruptive protests in the U.S. after the election, U.S. intelligence officials say.
Russia and Iran may try to incite violence or disruptive protests in the U.S. after the election, U.S. intelligence officials say.
An unclassified assessment released Tuesday says the U.S. intelligence community “is increasingly confident that Russian actors are considering—and in some cases implementing—a broad range of influence efforts timed with the election. Some of these are aimed at inciting violence and calling into question the validity of democracy as a political system, regardless of who wins.”
The document also says intelligence officials believe Iran could similarly pave the way for violence through online influence operations. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which coordinates intelligence agencies’ response to foreign influence campaigns, has repeatedly said in recent months that Iran is seeking to influence Americans. In 2020, the U.S. accused Iran of creating a website and a social media campaign, posing as right-wing Americans, calling for various public figures tied to that election to be killed.
“Iran may try to incite violence like they did after the last presidential election. In December 2020, Iran almost certainly was responsible for the creation of a website containing death threats against U.S. election officials,” the assessment says.
The intelligence director’s office has consistently warned that three U.S. adversaries have conducted persistent propaganda operations against Americans, though it’s unclear how effective they are. All three aim to denigrate the democratic process, though their presidential preferences are different: Russia supports former President Donald Trump for president, Iran supports VIce President Kamala Harris, and China doesn’t have a clear favorite.
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