The Hebrew-language account of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, was suspended on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) just hours after its launch, following his direct threat to Israel. This development comes amid escalating hostilities between Israel and Iran, particularly in the aftermath of Israel’s recent airstrikes on Iranian military targets in Tehran and surrounding areas.
On Saturday, the Israeli Defense Forces carried out airstrikes in response to a recent rocket barrage from Iranian-backed sources aimed at Israel. The strikes, which reportedly resulted in the deaths of four Iranian soldiers, targeted what Israel called critical Iranian military sites. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed that the strikes severely impacted Iran’s defense capabilities and missile production facilities, asserting that Israel would take action against any direct threats.
In response to Israel’s actions, Ali Khamenei launched a new account in Hebrew, likely aiming to communicate directly with the Israeli public. Shortly after, he posted a statement warning Israel of the consequences of their actions, writing, “The Zionist regime made a mistake. It erred in its calculations on Iran. We will cause it to understand what kind of strength, ability, initiative, and will the Iranian nation has.” The message quickly drew attention across international media and social platforms, with analysts interpreting it as a direct signal of impending retaliation.
However, the @Khamenei_Heb account was suspended hours after this post, with X citing a violation of its rules as the reason for the suspension. While the exact cause remains undisclosed, Ali Khamenei’s use of aggressive language may have led to the action taken by X. Ali Khamenei’s main account on the platform, which primarily posts in English and occasionally in Hebrew, remains active. In addition to these accounts, he also operates an Arabic-language account, while the handle ‘Ali Khamenei Media’ frequently posts and shares his statements, often retweeted by the Supreme Leader’s main account.
Initially, Iranian authorities attempted to minimize the impact of the Israeli airstrikes, suggesting the damage was contained. However, Ali Khamenei later advised that the incident should not be downplayed, urging Iranian officials to evaluate how best to respond and demonstrate Iran’s power to Israel. In a statement broadcast by Iranian media, he cautioned against either downplaying or exaggerating the scale of the Israeli attack. “The evil committed by the Zionist regime (Israel) two nights ago should neither be downplayed nor exaggerated,” he said.
Additionally, Ali Khamenei emphasized that Israel might have underestimated Iran’s capacity for retaliation. He posted a separate tweet, stating, “Zionists are making a miscalculation with respect to Iran. They don’t know Iran. They still haven’t been able to correctly understand the power, initiative, and determination of the Iranian people. We need to make them understand these things.” This language is characteristic of Ali Khamenei’s approach to addressing Israel, as he frequently critiques the “Zionist regime” in similar terms.
Israeli officials have yet to comment on the suspension of Ali Khamenei’s Hebrew-language account, though the action has raised questions about social media’s role in moderating state-sponsored accounts that use platforms for direct threats. The timing of these statements and the account’s suspension has intensified an already tense situation between Israel and Iran, further drawing international attention to the conflict.
