More than 92 million people in Iran have been cut off from the internet for over 30 days under a severe nationwide blackout, but one man with access is using a dizzying combination of memes, trading tips and sarcasm to play Donald Trump at his own propaganda game.
The hardline speaker of the Iranian parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, has regularly been posting taunting memes in English on X in an attempt to counter Trump’s frequent Truth Social posts on the war.
Ghalibaf, 64, one of Iran's leading conservative figures, is a former commander with ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Despite this, he is viewed by experts as a pragmatist and has been named by Trump as someone the US is negotiating with behind the scenes. This has been denied by Ghalibaf and Iran’s foreign ministry.
In public, both are going head to head in a rapidly expanding information war, with memes, viral videos, and AI slop as their weapons of choice.
Memes
One of the Iranian speaker’s recent posts on X compares Saturday’s No Kings protests in the US with the Islamic Revolution in 1979 which overthrew the US-backed monarchy. Ghalibaf wrote: “Welcome to the party we started 47 years ago, No kings,” adding: “We approve this message.”
Another one featured a photo showing significant damage to an American E-3 Sentry aircraft which was hit by an Iranian drone at a base in Saudi Arabia, with the mocking caption: “Sustained only minor damage,” followed by three pinching hand emojis.
Welcome to the party we started 47 years ago, No kings. This is the people of Iran, and we approve this message.#NoKings pic.twitter.com/JGT78zn4kW
— محمدباقر قالیباف | MB Ghalibaf (@mb_ghalibaf) March 29, 2026
Last week, Ghalibaf ridiculed Trump’s ever-changing war objectives, saying: “They’re playing 6D chess again!” Along with two clapping hands emojis.
In a more aggressive message over the weekend, he said Iran was "waiting for American soldiers to enter on the ground so they can set them ablaze."
Trading tips
Ghalibaf has also accused Trump of trying to “jawbone” the oil market by using social media to try to push down prices.
In an extraordinary post on 30 March, he appeared to offer financial advice, writing: “Heads-up: Pre-market so-called “news” or “Truth” is often just a setup for profit-taking. Basically, it’s a reverse indicator. Do the opposite: If they pump it, short it. If they dump it, go long. See something tomorrow? You know the drill.”
In another mocking post he wrote: “How can the US, which can't even protect its own soldiers at its bases in the region and instead leaves them stashed away in hotels and parks, protect them on our soil?”
His posts have been reaching hundreds of thousands of people on X.
AI and viral videos
Pro-Iran accounts, including those linked to the state, are also sharing videos that use AI to mock Netanyahu, Trump, and his administration as weak. They suggest the US, Israel, and Gulf states will suffer huge losses and destruction if they continue with the war.
The Islamic regime shared a two-minute video last month depicting Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as Lego figurines. In the bizarre video, posted by Iran’s Tasnim News Agency, Trump and Netanyahu stand beside a Lego Satan and look over a folder titled: “Jeffrey Epstein File.”
The videos appear to be a response to Call of Duty-style videos shared by the White House on X showing real footage from the war with Iran, which are interspersed with video game graphics, soundtrack, and clips from superhero movies. Critics say the videos are distasteful and show a lack of seriousness in the White House’s approach to the conflict.
One video, which references a popular meme, depicts a scene from the video game Grand Theft Auto with the caption and audio: “Ah s***, here we go again.”
The clip then jumps to footage of a US strike with the word “wasted” appearing superimposed over the video, which is a reference to when a player makes a kill on “Grand Theft Auto.”
Democratic Senator Tammy Duckworth, an Iraq war veteran who was wounded in combat, said: “War is not a f****** video game.”
“Six Americans are dead and thousands more are at needless risk because of your illegal, unjustified war. And you're calling this a flawless victory," Duckworth posted on X.
Chicago's Cardinal Blase Cupich issued a statement after seeing the White House videos, saying: “A real war with real death and real suffering being treated like it's a video game — it's sickening.”
Despite the criticism, both Tehran and Washington are continuing to wage this so-called meme war, using the same tactics to gamify a conflict that has so far killed around 5,000 people across the region.
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