The conflict involving Iran marks a significant moment in modern warfare, as the battleground of propaganda is increasingly dominated by memes. This new frontier in the information war is rapidly evolving, with digital content playing a pivotal role in shaping public perception.

In recent days, accounts supportive of Iran have unleashed a series of viral videos that mock President Trump. These clips portray him as being easily manipulated by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, while also suggesting that U.S. military forces could face substantial losses if hostilities persist. The videos are crafted with advanced AI technology and sophisticated animation techniques, often depicting Trump and his associates in a satirical light. Remarkably, some of these animations use characters reminiscent of Lego figures, though it is important to note that the official Lego brand is not affiliated with these productions.

The strategic intention behind these videos is clear: to not only showcase Iranian resilience but also to incite opposition to Trump’s military actions within the American populace. By relying heavily on visual storytelling, the videos effectively transcend language barriers, with much of the sparse text appearing in English rather than Farsi. Furthermore, some of these clips touch on sensitive subjects within American political discourse, such as the Jeffrey Epstein scandal, to resonate more strongly with U.S. audiences.

(The official Lego brand obviously has no connection with the videos in question.)

The videos are plainly designed not only to show Iranian defiance but to foment dissent against Trump’s war among Americans. They function almost entirely on a visual level, removing any real language barrier, and the spare text is more often in English than in Farsi. Some videos also make reference to potent topics in American political culture, such as the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.

The pro-Iranian messages are a counterweight, of a kind, to the videos the Trump administration has released to underscore its military successes in the conflict that began on Feb. 28. 

The U.S. videos have been accompanied by loud music and spliced with clips from franchises including “Call of Duty” and “Top Gun.” In one instance, cartoon character SpongeBob SquarePants even popped up saying, “You want to see me do it again?” amid footage of U.S. strikes on Iran.

The American videos have been controversial, with critics complaining about a trivialization or gamification of war and bloodshed. The administration has defended the approach. In one quote that itself went semi-viral on social media, an unnamed senior White House official proudly told Politico, “We’re over here just grinding away on banger memes, dude.”

Experts on propaganda and the use of social media in the modern age say that the new developments are hugely significant — even as they are careful not to equate the so-called meme war with an actual war that has killed almost 2,000 people in Iran, roiled the global economy and cost the lives of at least 13 American service members.

Roger Stahl, a professor of communication studies at the University of Georgia, said he didn’t want to “diminish the fact that there is a real, kinetic war” taking place. 

But he acknowledged that the nature of social media can make it easier for a side that is militarily outgunned to get its message out at near-parity with its larger adversaries.

“The platform itself and the viral nature of things favors asymmetric, low-power actors because they can produce something that will go viral if it’s clever enough,” Stahl said.

Contrasting the current, often chaotic, information environment with the old model where American media was defined by a handful of newspapers and three broadcast networks, Stahl added that now “it’s not about having monopoly power over a few channels, but about open season on an open field. Just as Iran has thousands of tiny drones, it can play the social game in a similar way.”

The provenance of every single pro-Iranian video is not clear. 

Two of the major AI animations appear to come from an account known as Explosive Media on social platform X and Akhbarenfejari on Instagram. The X account described the people behind it as an “independent Iranian AI production team” in a March 18 post.

But the Iranian leadership itself has also made use of social media — and its puckish sensibility. 

The Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, trolled U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth with a Thursday post implying Hegseth was being a crybaby for complaining that Iran had “lied” about its missile capabilities.

The Iranian Embassy in South Africa shared its own AI-generated video early Friday celebrating missile attacks against Tel Aviv. And, earlier in the week, a spokesperson for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps made a video statement in which he switched from Farsi to English to mock Trump with the trademark phrases “You’re fired” and “Thank you for your attention to this matter.”

To be sure, the Iranian regime is equally open to the charge of trivializing the conflict, and the enthusiasm expressed online for the videos by Trump-critical Americans sits uneasily with the Islamic Republic’s grim human rights record. A regime crackdown on domestic protesters earlier this year is estimated to have killed more than 7,000 people.

But it’s possible to acknowledge those facts and still see why people are fascinated by the very modern way in which the propaganda battle is playing out.

The sheer speed of communication in the social media age can mean that “traditional newspapers are sometimes covering what the rest of the world understands is already going on in social media,” said Renee Hobbs, a communications studies professor at the University of Rhode Island.

Hobbs, an expert on modern media literacy, also noted that the Iranian efforts to make Trump a figure of ridicule have a particular potency given the president’s fixation with being viewed as a strong leader.

“I think now, in his second term, people around the world are understanding how to get under his skin, and what are the triggers,” Hobbs said. She added that Trump’s adversaries, including the Iranians, “make the decision to fight fire with fire. ‘If Trump is going to use internet memes to show how strong he is, we are going to use the same strategies to show how weak he is.’”

Similarly, Stahl noted that one reason that the pro-Iranian animated videos have such traction is because they have an actual narrative structure as opposed to the “highlight reel” sensibility of the Trump administration’s videos of missile strikes.

The U.S. videos “don’t tell a story. They aren’t designed to make a case. The ones coming out of Iran, like the AI ‘Lego’ one, ascribe a motive to the Trump administration — distraction from the Epstein files — and describe the overreach of the campaign,” he said.

Ultimately the propaganda battle will never be quite so important as the military and diplomatic ones. But it is being waged with ferocity all the same.

“It’s the TikTok age, and governments are driving their propaganda and their messages in that type of format,” said Tobe Berkovitz, a Boston University professor emeritus who specializes in political communication.

The Memo is a reported column by Niall Stanage.

An heir to an oil fortune has been ordered to pay over $1 billion in damages after a brutal attack that left his two-year-old stepson permanently disabled.

Charles Edwin Brooks Jr, a descendant of a prominent Humble Oil investor, was held responsible for the severe injuries he caused to young Blake Sampson.

The 2021 attack left Sampson with grave head injuries, including brain swelling, along with bite marks on his legs.

In 2023, Brooks was found guilty of the assault and received a 40-year prison sentence.

This week, a jury in Texas awarded approximately $291 million in compensatory damages, along with an additional $810 million in punitive damages, following a lawsuit filed by the child’s mother, Madison Ball.

Her legal team said the award is the largest child abuse verdict in US history.

Brooks was previously married to Ball and was babysitting Sampson on April 22, 2021, when he carried out the heinous attack.

Hours later, he called Ball claiming the boy was ‘non-responsive,’ initially suggesting he had fallen. 

A Dallas County jury awarded about $1.1 billion to Blake Sampson in what attorneys say is the largest child abuse verdict in US history after the youngster was savagely beaten by his step father. Blake is seen with mom, Madison Ball

Charles Edwin Brooks Jr., 32, was babysitting his two-year-old stepson Blake in 2021 when he attacked him 

Paramedics found Blake with severe head trauma, brain swelling, and bite marks on his legs. Blake was rushed to Medical City Dallas and placed in a medically induced coma on a ventilator

Ball asked to see her son over FaceTime and was shown her son lying unclothed and barely breathing.

Despite her insistence that he call for help, court records state Brooks refused to, so Ball dialed 911 herself.

When paramedics arrived, they found Blake in a devastating condition with severe head trauma, brain swelling, extensive bruising across his body, and adult bite marks on his legs.

He was rushed to Medical City Dallas, placed on a ventilator and put into a medically induced coma as doctors fought to save his life.

Medical evidence presented in court showed Blake suffered a traumatic brain injury affecting multiple critical areas of the brain, along with retinal hemorrhaging, chronic respiratory failure, and a seizure disorder.

Today, Blake, who is now seven, requires constant around-the-clock care. He relies on a breathing machine, uses a tracheostomy tube and cannot walk.

The lawsuit detailed the profound, permanent impact on every aspect of his life, which formed the basis for the massive damages awarded.

In the aftermath of the attack, Brooks gave varying explanations for what had happened, according to court documents, at times claiming the child fell from a table, down stairs, or had been in a car accident.

Blake Sampson is seen with his father Steven Sampson in a 2021 photo 

There was extensive bruising across his body including adult bite marks on his legs

Brooks pleaded guilty to first-degree felony injury to a child and is serving a 40-year prison sentence

He later pleaded guilty in August 2023 to first-degree felony injury to a child and is now serving a 40-year prison sentence.

The civil case, brought by Ball and Blake’s father, Stephen Sampson, was tried in the 134th District Court in Dallas County.

The jury’s compensatory award included tens of millions for future medical care, mental anguish, loss of enjoyment of life, and physical suffering. Additional damages were awarded to both parents.

In the punitive phase, jurors imposed hundreds of millions more in exemplary damages, reflecting the severity of the abuse.

Lead attorney Tony Buzbee, whose Houston-based firm represented the family, framed the verdict as a statement about protecting children.

‘We claim to value children in our society. This Texas jury stepped up and showed that,’ Buzbee said. 

‘Don’t mess with Texas children. I hope that through this verdict this precious child gets all the care he will need and hopefully make his life as good as it can be made under the circumstances.’

In a post to Facebook, Buzbee explained why the jury found Brooks guilty. 

‘Because the jury saw, and felt, and heard about the child, Blake Sampson. They saw the bloody pictures from the duplex where he was beaten, where he was pinched and bitten. Where he was essentially tortured.

Blake Sampson’s parents, Madison Ball and Stephen Sampson, filed the civil lawsuit on his behalf seeking damages for the life-altering injuries he suffered in the 2021 attack

Little Blake was a happy and sweet young child before he was brutally attacked by his step dad

Blake is now confined to a wheelchair and cannot walk as a result of the vicious assault

‘They saw blood on the counter, and the floor, and on Blake’s diapers, and the blood splatter on the mirror and the toilet, and the doors and walls. 

‘They saw the blood on Brooks’ trust documents for the trust he relied upon for support. The jury saw the video of the first responders. And they met the precious, beautiful, miracle of a child, Blake Sampson,’ Buzbee said.

Darren Anderson, who represented Blake’s father, said: ‘This verdict reflects the strength of our client’s case and the unwavering commitment to pursuing justice.’

Brooks is the great-grandson of Percy Turner, an early investor in Humble Oil, tying him to a prominent Texas oil lineage.

Attorneys for the family have indicated they believe Brooks has access to substantial financial resources, including a trust, and intend to pursue collection of the judgment to fund Blake’s lifelong care.

The Daily Mail reached out to Brooks’s lawyer for comment. 

In a major development in the United Kingdom, authorities arrested two men on Wednesday in connection to what Prime Minister Keir Starmer has labeled an “antisemitic arson attack.” The investigation is also exploring potential links to Iran, adding an international dimension to the case.

The Metropolitan Police reported that the suspects, aged 45 and 47, were apprehended at separate locations in northwest and central London. They face charges of arson with intent to endanger life, and their homes are currently being searched by law enforcement. The incident in question occurred on Monday when four ambulances operated by Hatzola, a volunteer ambulance service in the Golders Green area of north London, were set ablaze.

Prime Minister Starmer expressed his shock and condemnation of the incident on social media, remarking, “The antisemitic arson attack in Golders Green is horrifying.” His comments underline the gravity and sensitivity of the situation.

Complicating the investigation is a video making rounds online, apparently showing a group named Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiyya, which has ties to Iran, claiming responsibility for the attack. This group has also allegedly been involved in recent attacks on Jewish sites in Belgium and the Netherlands, according to the Jewish Chronicle.

Members of the Jewish community gathered on Tuesday to witness the aftermath of the attack in Golders Green, a neighborhood known for its vibrant Jewish community. The sight has left many residents and officials deeply concerned about safety and the rising tide of antisemitism. (Photo by Henry Nicholls/AFP via Getty Images)

“We are aware of an online claim from a group taking responsibility for this attack,” Detective Chief Superintendent Luke Williams of the Metropolitan Police previously said. “Establishing the authenticity and accuracy of this claim will be a priority… but it is not something we can confirm at this point.” 

When asked about the possible Iran link on Wednesday, the Metropolitan Police told Fox News Digital that establishing any potential motivation behind the attack is part of the ongoing investigation but that it could not comment further at this time. 

Commander Helen Flanagan, head of Counterterrorism Policing London, which the Metropolitan Police said is leading the investigation, said Wednesday, “We have been working around the clock since this appalling attack took place and this has led to these arrests being made this morning.”

Firefighters are seen tackling a blaze at Highfield Road in the Golders Green neighborhood of London, following an apparent arson attack on four ambulances belonging to the Jewish Community Ambulance Service. (PA/PA Images via Getty Images)

“This appears to be an important breakthrough in the investigation, but we’re also mindful that CCTV footage of the incident suggests there were at least three people involved,” she added. “We fully recognize the local community will still be concerned, and our investigation very much remains active, and we will continue to work to identify and seek to arrest all of those who may have been involved.” 

“We know that community concerns remain heightened, and I want to reassure the community that an enhanced, bespoke policing plan and activity, which is particularly focused around vulnerable areas right across London, will continue over coming days and weeks,” Williams said Wednesday.

Charred remains of ambulances belonging to Hatzola, a Jewish community organization, which were set on fire in an incident that the police say is being treated as an antisemitic hate crime, in northwest London, on Monday, March 23, 2026. (Hannah McKay/TPX Images of the Day/Reuters)

“This includes specialist officers and capability being deployed alongside local officers to help protect certain locations and will also involve highly visible armed police patrols to serve as a deterrent to anyone seeking to cause our communities harm,” he continued. “I must stress that these are precautionary and not in response to any specific threat, and we continue to work alongside our colleagues in counterterrorism policing to support their investigation.”