The Islamic Revolution in the Cognitive Battlefield: Assessing the Relationship between the “Jihād e Tabyīn” Doctrine and the Emerging Challenge of Deepfakes

Zareei, Ali; Muhammadi, Reza

doi:10.22034/ipr.2026.557823.2331

The Islamic Revolution in the Cognitive Battlefield: Assessing the Relationship between the “Jihād e Tabyīn” Doctrine and the Emerging Challenge of Deepfakes

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Ali Zareei ¹

Reza muhammadi ²

¹ Assistant Professor, Department of Islamic Studies, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran. (Corresponding author).

² Assistant Professor, Department of Islamic Studies, Faculty of Humanities, Bu-Ali Sina University, Hamedan, Iran.

10.22034/ipr.2026.557823.2331

Abstract

In the contemporary era, the pattern of confrontation with the Islamic Revolution has shifted from hard warfare to cognitive warfare—a battle aimed at dominating minds and managing societal perceptions. In this context, “deepfake” technology, as a novel cognitive weapon with the capability to produce fabricated yet realistic content, has become a primary tool for the enemy to spread falsehoods and disinformation, targeting official authorities and the credibility of narratives. This situation poses a serious challenge to the “Jihād e Tabyīn” doctrine as the Islamic Republic’s cognitive defense strategy. Therefore, the main question of this research is how deepfake technology challenges the effectiveness of the “Jihād e Tabyīn” doctrine in the cognitive battlefield, and what strategies exist to enhance this doctrine against this emerging threat. This article, using a descriptive-analytical method and a qualitative approach, examines the interaction between this doctrine and the deepfake threat. Findings indicate that deepfakes disrupt the effectiveness of the “Jihād e Tabyīn” through five mechanisms: “authority erosion,” “information flooding,” “activation of societal fault lines,” “memory distortion,” and “systematic delegitimization.” The results suggest that countering this threat necessitates a transition from reactive defense to integrated defense. Accordingly, solutions are proposed across three complementary levels: technical-legal, educational-media, and strategic-institutional.

Keywords

Islamic Revolution

Cognitive Warfare

Jihad of Clarification

Deepfakes

Cognitive Security

Domination of Minds

Subjects

Islamic Revolution

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