The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today called on Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines to prevent anti-Muslim and anti-Palestinian extremists from smearing and endangering Americans protesting the Gaza genocide by immediately clarifying her office’s “vague, potentially dangerous” claim that Iranian social media users have in recent weeks attempted to stoke protests in the U.S. related to the Gaza genocide. CAIR also called on Haines to share information about numerous Israeli influence campaigns targeting the American people.
READ CAIR’S LETTER TO DNI DIRECTOR HAINES.
In a statement, CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell said:
“Like the Americans who protested against segregation, the Vietnam war and the illegal invasion of Iraq, the diverse group of Americans protesting against the Gaza genocide have done so organically and independently. Director Haines must immediately clarify her vague and potentially dangerous public claim that over the past few weeks Iranians using social media have attempted to stoke protests or give donations in support of protests. How many Iranians have done this? When did they start? Which social media platforms have they used? How much money have they supposedly donated online?
“In the absence of any detail or evidence whatsoever, Director Haines has given anti-Palestinian and anti-Muslim extremists leeway to exaggerate her claim, cast suspicion on future protests, and further endanger Americans who have already been beaten stabbed, rammed with cars, and subjected to other attacks while protesting over the past eight months. This is not 1948 or 1968. Joseph McCarthy is dead. So is J. Edgar Hoover. Today’s government must not resurrect their eras by weaponizing its power to smear or silence the American people.
“If Director Haines is concerned about foreign influence, she must also publicly share detail about the Israeli government’s efforts to use fake social media users, bots and lobbyists to target American citizens, manipulate members of Congress and manufacture support for their genocide.”
In a statement released yesterday, Haines claimed without sharing any evidence: “In recent weeks, Iranian government actors have sought to opportunistically take advantage of ongoing protests regarding the war in Gaza, using a playbook we’ve seen other actors use over the years. We have observed actors tied to Iran’s government posing as activists online, seeking to encourage protests, and even providing financial support to protesters.”
On the same day Haines made the claims about Iran, major American media outlets stated: “Websites that appear to covertly target mostly younger, progressive Americans with a pro-Israeli spin on the war in Gaza are linked to a company that’s being paid by the Israeli government to sway lawmakers and public opinion in the U.S.”
SEE: How Israel tried to use AI to covertly sway Americans about Gaza – NPR
A month ago, the New York Times reported: “Israel organized and paid for an influence campaign last year targeting U.S. lawmakers and the American public with pro-Israel messaging, as it aimed to foster support for its actions in the war in Gaza.”
SEE: Israel Secretly Targets U.S. Lawmakers with Influence Campaign on Gaza War – New York Times
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CONTACT: CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, e-Mitchell@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, ihooper@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Manager Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, iallison@cair.com