An Al Jazeera investigation reveals that the #FreeThePersianPeople hashtag, which trended on X during recent Iranian protests, was not an organic movement but an externally engineered influence operation. Data analysis shows that 94 percent of the 4,370 posts analyzed were retweets, with original content originating from fewer than 170 users, yet reaching over 18 million. This "astroturfing" campaign, spearheaded by accounts linked to Israel and pro-Israel circles, promoted a rigid political framework, framing the unrest as a "moment of collapse" and advocating for Reza Pahlavi as the sole alternative. The operation involved direct participation from Israeli officials, including Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir and former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, and sought to reframe the protests as a conflict against religion, distinguishing "Persians" from "Muslims." The discourse also evolved to include calls for foreign military intervention, amplified by figures like Donald Trump and members of the US Congress.