The IDF’s Farsi-language spokesperson, Kamal Penhasi, on Wednesday published a message in Farsi addressed directly to the Iranian public, raising questions about the authenticity of Ebrahim Zolfaghari, who serves as spokesman for Iran’s security forces.
According to Penashi, "he looks to us more like a product of artificial intelligence than a real person."
In his message, the IDF spokesperson called on Iranian citizens who have encountered Zolfaghari in interviews or in person to share information. He urged, "If you haven’t seen him, help us prove that he is an AI product."
He concluded, "Are they forced to create fictional figures to speak to the public? And what does that say about the credibility of their messages?"
Zolfaghari, a lieutenant colonel serving as spokesman for the Khatam al-Anbiya headquarters (the top operational coordination body between Iran’s army and the Revolutionary Guards), emerged as a "war phenomenon," attempting to conduct direct psychological warfare against Israel.
Zolfaghari, a charismatic officer in his 30s, deliberately tried to emulate the strategy of the IDF’s Arabic spokesperson, Avichay Adraee, by addressing the enemy directly and in its own language. He appeared in videos attempting to speak Hebrew, incorporating religious and literary elements into his speeches. He is reportedly fluent in four languages - Farsi, Arabic, English, and broken Hebrew. He has threatened that American soldiers would become "food for sharks in the Persian Gulf" and warned that an Israeli strike would return the region to the "Stone Age."