'Israel’s' 'Blue Message' psy-op sought to lure Iranians for coup plot
5 Min Read
The “Blue Message” campaign has resorted to manipulative imagery and Mossad links to pressure Iranians, including nuclear specialists, to betray their country.
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An Iranian demonstrator holds an anti-Israeli banner during a rally commemorating the anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution that toppled the pro-US Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Iran, Monday, Feb. 10, 2025. (AP)
A covert online campaign linked to Israeli intelligence sought to lure Iranians into betraying their government, and, in a surprising twist, some of the ads appear to have been distributed by Desi Banks, a popular Atlanta-based comedian and influencer with no prior ties to Middle East politics.
The revelations come from an investigation reported by The Grayzone and originally published by Dr. Jack Poulson and Lee Fang at All-Source Intelligence. Dr. Poulson, publisher of All-Source Intelligence Fusion, and Fang, an investigative journalist who tracks how organized interest groups and entrenched ideologies shape public policy, detail how Banks’ production company became entangled in an espionage campaign targeting Iran.
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Banks, known for lighthearted comedy sketches and boasting more than nine million Instagram followers, has no public history of weighing in on Middle East politics. His ad campaigns on Meta platforms have consistently focused on his entertainment work. Despite this, records suggest his production company played a role in pushing recruitment ads for an Israeli operation. Banks did not respond to repeated requests for comment.
Over the past year, Israeli-linked operatives reportedly used Banks’ production firm to run Persian-language ads across at least 19 countries, including the US, Germany, India, and several in the Middle East and Africa.
The campaign sought to persuade members of Iran’s intelligence and security services, including nuclear specialists, to defect in exchange for money and family protection.
Direct links to Mossad
Google’s advertising transparency records reveal that some ads pointed viewers straight to Mossad’s official Persian-language recruitment portal.
In an unprecedented step, one campaign even instructed viewers to activate a VPN before clicking. Other ads promoted fictitious consulting jobs to mask the espionage push.
Germany emerged as a key focus: it was the only country flagged as a target of all four recruitment campaigns. The ads directly appealed to relatives of Iranian nuclear engineers, telling them:
“You are just one click away from making history. Call Now. The future belongs to you.”
Manipulative imagery
Another ad deployed the image of an infant to pull viewers into a recruitment form. “If you care about your child’s future, watch this video,” the banner read.
Clicking led to a form urging users to help topple Iran’s government, warning, “The last days of the regime are near. Today is the time to act. It would be a betrayal of Iran not to take action at this crucial moment.”
The page promised recruits security protections and “numerous other benefits,” while asking them to start with an anonymous Gmail account.
At the center of these efforts was “Blue Message", a recruitment drive spanning Telegram, X, and a now-defunct website (payameabi.com). The campaign openly called itself “a recruitment center for esteemed personnel and employees of Iranian security and intelligence agencies,” offering safe cooperation for those in nuclear facilities.
Propaganda content
The highest-profile propaganda appeared in January: a two-minute animation of a fictional Iranian engineer named Amir defecting to "Israel" for the sake of his newborn child.
“I am waiting for your call,” Amir declared after sending his plea into the heart of Tel Aviv.
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A two-minute animation of a fictional Iranian engineer named Amir defecting to "Israel" for the sake of his newborn child.
While some mocked the video online as a “Classic honeypot", Blue Message continued releasing material, especially during the recent Israeli aggression on Iran, urging defections under hashtags like Operation Rising Lion.
من عاشق مردم ایرانم.
— حنانیا نفتالی (@HananyaPersian) June 18, 2025
قول میدم که بهترین دوستای هم بشیم. pic.twitter.com/uqTD5d6YUS
The campaign’s Persian-language X account even reshared a video from Hananya Naftali, a digital advisor to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Posts promoted Iranian opposition figure Reza Pahlavi’s “Cyrus Accords” and circulated images of him with Israeli officials.
Reactions and warnings
Lebanese media outlet Al Manar reported in January that the campaign was run by Israeli intelligence as part of “Israeli Cyberwarfare". Other Persian-language X users also warned that the @payameabi account was collecting sensitive information under Mossad’s direction. Meanwhile, some argued the campaign might be an Iranian counterintelligence ploy.
This is not the first time Israeli operations have tried to destabilize Iran. During the June war, The Washington Post reported an Israeli operative threatening an Iranian general’s family and demanding a video denouncement of Tehran.
Blue Message launched on Telegram with a cheery opening, “Hello dear Iranians everywhere in beautiful Iran!”, but its reach seems modest. A July quiz post on its channel drew only 804 views and 117 responses, while an October poll on X drew derision, with most respondents insisting “no one” had joined and others blasting "Israel as child killers.”
