Iran has deployed new techniques to swiftly and decisively crush nationwide protests, signaling a tactical shift by a regime that now views domestic dissent as an extension of the summer war with Israel.
What began as the regime’s age-old riot-control methods quickly escalated into advanced techniques to suppress protests, combining cutting-edge military technology with sophisticated psychological operations, according to experts.
Low-flying surveillance drones, signal jammers, a rapid-response propaganda apparatus, and the violent deployment of force were unleashed simultaneously by a regime keen to learn from each wave of unrest.
Iran’s latest playbook to crush dissent reflects lessons adopted after deep Israeli infiltration of the country shocked and embarrassed the regime due to the role in played in Israel’s success in the 12-day war in June. The increasingly paranoid government now frames the latest wave of domestic unrest as the “thirteenth day of war” with Israel, painting protesters as foreign agents that need to be “dealt with.”
Protesters were heavily surveilled with CCTV cameras on the streets, but even those who chose to protest from their homes by shouting anti-regime slogans from their windows were being watched. Iranian police distributed a video titled “Identifable Sounds” showing drones hovering outside apartment buildings to find people chanting against the regime.
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