Sep. 29 – An investigation looking into the diplomatic relationship between several US-based Iran analysts and the Iranian regime suggested that the engagements amounted to an Iranian-backed influence operation in the United States.
The reports, produced by news outlets Semafor, and Iran International which had received thousands of emails sent by officials and experts, said the analysts had been “cooperating closely” with the regime in a bid to revive the 2015 nuclear deal.
Several analysts named in the report had worked with the State Department’s former Iran envoy Robert Malley, who was placed on leave in June after his security clearance was suspended.
Tehran has accused Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of threatening to launch a nuclear attack on Iran, following comments he made at a United Nations General Assembly.
Netanyahu told the delegation that Iran “must face a credible nuclear threat” to prevent Iran from getting nuclear weapons.
His office later put out a statement saying the Prime Minister misspoke and meant to say, “credible military threat.”
And Iranian clerics in the holy city of Qom have begun to explore the use of Artificial Intelligence for a range of activities, including summarizing religious texts and issuing fatwas (religious decrees).
The clerics are members of a state-linked organization in Qom supporting the growth of technology businesses.
Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has also called on the clergy to explore AI, announcing in June that he wanted the country to be “at least among the top 10 countries in the world in terms of artificial intelligence.”
