Bloody NYC Khamenei vigil reveals anti-US protest network linked to Iran

A tiny radical of New Yorkers lined candles beneath a representation of Iran’s precocious leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, astatine a caller "vigil" successful Manhattan's Washington Square Park, and wrong minutes, a confrontation turned violent, past viral.

As Jewish rapper Rami Even-Esh approached the March 6 vigil, helium noticed thing was missing successful the pro-regime gathering, which drew lone a fewer twelve radical from 5 far-left groups, including the socialist "Workers World Party."

"I looked astir for images of the regime’s victims," Even-Esh told Fox News Digital, referring to tens of thousands of protesters the Iranian authorities reportedly killed earlier this year. "I looked for Iranians who supported the regime, and I didn’t spot any."

Slowly, Even-Esh, who performs nether the moniker "Kosha Dillz," picked up the Khamenei photo, video footage shows, prompting respective vigil organizers to rapidly tackle him, punch him successful the caput and footwear him arsenic helium fell to the ground. He emerged bloodied, and New York Police Department officers arrested some him and 1 of his assailants.

Video of the confrontation rapidly dispersed online, generating wide attention, with pro-regime groups framing the lawsuit acold beyond the parkland arsenic a awesome of wide "resistance" to the warfare successful Iran. The incidental besides offered a telling glimpse into a wider power run present drafting scrutiny.

WITH DOGS, DANCE AND UNCOVERED HAIR, IRANIANS DEFY 'UNHOLY ALLIANCE' OF SOCIALISTS, RADICALS: ‘HYPOCRITES!’

Jewish rapper Rami Even-Esh, known arsenic "Kosha Dillz," ends up bloodied aft an altercation with supporters of the precocious Ayatollah Ali Khamenei astatine Washington Square Park connected March 6, 2026. (Rashid Umar Abbasi for Fox News Digital)

A caller study by the Network Contagion Research Institute, a deliberation vessel based successful Princeton, N.J., finds that the vigil — on with a follow-up "Al-Quds Day" protestation a week aboriginal connected March 13 — was organized, promoted and amplified by a well-connected web of far-left U.S. activistic groups with documented ties to Iranian authorities media. 

Earlier this week, President Donald Trump warned that Iran is pursuing an assertive disinformation campaign, accusing the authorities of utilizing artificial quality and coordinated narratives to signifier cognition beyond accepted battlefields.

Drawing connected leaked interior records, dating from 2019 to 2022, from Iran’s state-owned Press TV propaganda network, researchers identified repeated nonstop interaction betwixt Press TV officials and organizers of caller pro-regime protests, arsenic good arsenic patterns of coordination and amplification that helped alteration tiny section gatherings into wide circulated planetary flashpoints.

The study identifies a structured ecosystem linking U.S. activistic groups, intermediary media platforms and Iranian authorities outlets to a run of malign overseas influence, which is defined by the Directorate of National Intelligence arsenic "subversive, undeclared, coercive, oregon transgression activities by overseas governments, non-state actors oregon their proxies to impact different nation’s fashionable oregon governmental attitudes, perceptions oregon behaviors to beforehand their interests."

Organizers tied to the New York vigil besides coordinated follow-up protests for Al-Quds Day, the Arabic sanction for "Jerusalem Day," promoted done the aforesaid web of societal media accounts, organizations and leadership.

IRANIAN REGIME SPREADING ANTI-ISRAEL PROPAGANDA ACROSS DOZENS OF SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS: REPORT

Nerdeen Kiswani, co-founder of "Within Our Lifetime," leads a chant astatine a Times Square rally for Al-Quds Day connected March 13, 2026, successful New York City. A protester holds a agleam greenish motion for the socialist Workers World Party. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Fox News Digital has identified astatine slightest 75 organizations that person protested successful enactment of Iran’s authorities since the struggle began, including 50 that place arsenic far-left, Marxist, socialist oregon communist groups, and 22 that are Muslim organizations aligned with forms of governmental Islam, oregon Islamism. The remaining organizations autumn into overlapping ideological categories.

Many of these groups are connected done a broader activistic web linked to American-born tech tycoon Neville Roy Singham, who is based successful Shanghai. Lawmakers connected the House Ways and Means Committee and House Oversight Committee person launched investigations, probing whether Singham and the organizations helium funds should registry arsenic overseas agents, promoting the interests of the Chinese Communist Party.

Fox News Digital has reached retired to Singham and the groups organizing the pro-regime protests. 

Organizations associated with Singham's web see the People’s Forum, the ANSWER Coalition, the Party for Socialism and Liberation, CodePink Women for Peace and the Palestinian Youth Movement, and portion they didn't signifier the Khamenei vigil, they participated successful Al-Quds Day protests.

IRAN'S SUPREME LEADER MOJTABA KHAMENEI 'MISFUNCTIONING,' NOT CONTROLLING REGIME: SOURCES

Researchers accidental that socialist groups that acceptable up a "vigil" connected March 6, 2026, for the precocious Ayatollah Ali Khamenei person adjacent ties to Iran's authorities TV propaganda network. (Rashid Umar Abbasi for Fox News Digital)

The country astatine the vigil reflected the premix of governmental messaging and symbolism that has defined "intersectional" activism of far-left authorities successful caller years. Organizers draped the array with Khamenei’s representation with Palestinian checkered keffiyeh scarves and stocked it with pamphlets framing planetary conflicts — from Gaza to Haiti and apartheid South Africa — arsenic portion of a shared "anti-imperialist" struggle. A transcript of the Qur'an sat alongside revolutionary communist literature, blending the benignant of ideological and theological messaging that defines the alleged "red-green" confederation of socialists, represented by red, and Muslim theocrats, represented by the colour of greenish for Islam.

Organizers and affiliated groups see a conjugation of activistic organizations connected to the "United National Antiwar Coalition," the Workers World Party, the "Bronx Anti-War Coalition" and the ANSWER Coalition, networks of socialists and communists who person organized protests crossed the United States connected overseas argumentation and home issues.

The report’s strongest grounds centers connected a past of nonstop interaction betwixt Iranian authorities media and activists from the groups.

The leaked interior records from Press TV, which is sanctioned by the U.S. government, showed hundreds of communications with the tiny radical of organizers tied to the caller protests, including 83 calls to 1 elder figure. Researchers recovered that outreach acold exceeded interaction with different individuals based successful the U.S., suggesting sustained engagement alternatively than regular media interaction.

TRUMP VOWS TO HIT IRAN 'VERY HARD' AFTER OBLITERATING NEARLY '90 PERCENT' OF REGIME MISSILES

A emblem of the precocious Ayatollah Ali Khamenei flies successful Washington Square Park successful New York, N.Y. connected Friday, March 6, 2026, arsenic supporters amplify pro-regime messaging. (Rashid Umar Abbasi/Fox News Digital)

The investigation besides identified a signifier successful which that outreach appeared to hap earlier protests from 2019 to 2022. According to the report, spikes successful interaction from Press TV unit often occurred successful the weeks starring up to accrued protestation enactment successful the United States, indicating a level of synchronization that researchers accidental is improbable to beryllium coincidental.

The study besides documents a broader amplification loop: activists look connected Iranian authorities broadcasts, sharing and reposting authorities media contented and promoting protestation enactment aboriginal picked up by outlets aligned with Iran’s messaging ecosystem.

A abstracted media platform, "Vox Ummah," is identified arsenic an intermediary linking U.S.-based activists with Iran-aligned narratives successful the "ummah," an Arabic word for the planetary assemblage of Muslims, promoting the vigil and Al-Quds protests portion republishing contented from Iranian authorities outlets.

The study stops abbreviated of asserting nonstop operational coordination, but it concludes that the overlap of connection and messaging reflects a "repeatable power pipeline" susceptible of turning section protestation enactment into wide distributed governmental narratives of malign overseas influence.

"A strain of motivation disorder has taken clasp wherever a increasing fig of radical successful our communities protestation America portion excusing regimes that jail, torture and soundlessness their ain people," Adam Sohn, co-founder of the Network Contagion Research Institute, told Fox News Digital. "That’s not justice. It’s a intelligence contagion causing these radical to suffer show of what evil really looks like."

The study besides notes that messaging tied to the vigil, specified arsenic references to Khamenei’s "martyrdom," absorption to U.S. and Israeli argumentation and alignment with the "Axis of Resistance," a word invented to picture absorption to U.S. overseas policy, mirrors themes promoted by Iranian authorities media pursuing Khamenei's death.

IRAN WAGING EXTENSIVE AI MISINFORMATION WARFARE AGAINST US, ALLIES

Police apprehension Jewish rapper Rami Even-Esh, "Kosha Dillz," successful Washington Square Park connected March 6, 2026, aft helium protests a pro-Khamenei vigil. (Rashid Umar Abbasi for Fox News Digital)

On the borderline of the Khamenei vigil, Iranian American Reza Ebrahimi, laminitis of a radical called Lion Sun NY, watched the country unfold with Even-Esh emerging bloodied and handcuffed.

Ebrahimi told Fox News Digital helium is immune to pro-regime disinformation and propaganda. He was emboldened to spot that Even-Esh besides didn't succumb to the intimidation. 

He aboriginal told him, "I’m arrogant of you that you’re supporting us."

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Azziana Solomon contributed to this report.