Last week, ynet exposed the remarkable journey of a dramatic statement attributed to Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander Ahmad Vahidi, a statement that, as far as extensive searches could determine, he never actually made.
The claim began in India, was amplified in Israel and by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s son, then returned to India carrying what appeared to be the validation of the “Israeli media.”
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Netanyahu claims Vahidi said Iran intends to continue developing nuclear weapons
(Photo: Alex Kolomoisky)
The purported quote suggested that Iran was developing nuclear weapons. It was not a hint about threshold capability or a vague warning about future intentions. It was presented as a clear admission by a senior Iranian military official, the kind of statement that, if authentic, could have made headlines around the world.
But an extensive search found no Iranian source for it: no speech, video, transcript, Iranian news agency report or independent report by Reuters, AP or AFP.
A denial, however, did emerge. The English-language Tehran Times published comments in recent days from what it described as an “informed source,” responding to a claim published by Channel 14’s English-language account.
The source “strongly rejected” claims in what it called Israeli regime media that an Iranian military commander had made such remarks on the nuclear issue, describing the reports as false.
The Iranian newspaper accused the “Israeli regime” of producing what it called new fabrications after two wars against Iran and amid growing questions in the United States and elsewhere about what it described as the decades-old claim that Iran was seeking a nuclear bomb. “The position of the Islamic Republic on the nuclear issue is clear,” the paper said.
Ahmad Vahidi
(Photo: Atta Kenare / AFP )
The story began with a post from a Hindu nationalist account in India. It quickly reached Channel 14’s English-language account, which generally republishes translated material from the Hebrew-language channel.
The original claim had already been transformed into a news report, despite the fact that Channel 14’s Hebrew-language operation had not reported it at all. The English-language account declared that it was “the first time” a senior Iranian official had directly admitted Iran was developing a nuclear bomb.
A claim that had no identifiable source only hours earlier had suddenly become a historic development. The supposed “historic” statement then appeared in a speech by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at Mount Herzl. “We heard today IRGC commander Vahidi explicitly declare Iran’s intention to continue developing nuclear weapons,” Netanyahu said. “‘Continue,’ that’s what he said.”
The claim continued spreading. It reached the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, who later deleted a post about it, and Fox News. It did not stop there.
The report also made its way into the U.S. Senate. Republican Sen. Rick Scott of Florida, a former governor of the state, quoted the Channel 14 report as fact and wrote on X: “Iran is proving what we’ve always known and making its intentions clear.”
“If they get a nuclear weapon, they will use it,” Scott wrote. “This is exactly why the president was right to take action against the Iranian regime. We must NEVER allow Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon.”
Laurence Norman, the Wall Street Journal reporter who closely covers Iran’s nuclear program, openly questioned the claim. “This could be very significant. But where else is it being reported? Anywhere?” he wrote on X. No original source surfaced.
Ritika’s post in Hindi, where it all began
In Israel, some officials familiar with influence operations viewed the episode as a possible illegal influence campaign aimed not only at Israelis, but also at the United States.
The trajectory of the report, beginning in India and eventually returning there carrying the apparent endorsement of Israeli media, recalled previous reports published in the Jewish Chronicle and Germany’s Bild in 2024.
Those stories closely aligned with political messages Netanyahu was seeking to advance at the time.
The method is familiar: information moves abroad, acquires the appearance of an independent “foreign media report,” and then returns to Israel as supposedly external confirmation.
Two years ago, security officials described the affair involving leaks and distorted reports as an “illegal influence operation on blue,” meaning an influence campaign directed at the Israeli public, which state authorities are prohibited from targeting with propaganda or disinformation operations.
One official used a more colorful description at the time, calling it an “influence operation de la shmate,” a Yiddish-inflected phrase suggesting something crudely stitched together, with obvious errors and fabrications that were relatively easy to expose.
Speaking Friday, the same individual said: “Once again someone is running an illegal influence operation on blue, only this time it is also on red, meaning the United States. Here too, the seams are not invisible. You only need to look at them before the fake manages to acquire a prime minister, an ambassador and an American television network.”
The Prime Minister’s Office said Friday in response: “The State of Israel fully stands behind the prime minister’s statement that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard regime in Iran seeks to develop nuclear weapons.”