MEMRI’s Vice President Ambassador Alberto Fernandez said in a February 27, 2023 show on Alsharqiya News TV (Iraq) that the influence of Russian propaganda in the West has been exaggerated, and that Russian propaganda is more effective in the Middle East, Latin America, and Africa. He added that Russian influence has been used a pretext in the United States to carry out a witch-hunt that is endangering American democracy. Ambassador Fernandez also said that as a Cuban refugee, he opposes communism, which has been a “disaster for Cuba and everywhere.”

On February 21, 2023, China Daily tweeted a video showing PLA naval commando operators training in surface infiltration using silent personal water propulsion devices in an exercise that took place on the Western Yunnan Plateau. According to Su Tianqi, the deputy team leader of the Diving Training Team of an unspecified Special Forces brigade belonging to the PLA’s 75th Army Group, the unit’s new capabilities significantly extend their operational range.

On February 23, 2023, Al-Arabiya Network (Saudi Arabia) aired an interview with Russian anti-liberal philosopher Aleksander Dugin. Dugin said that Russia cannot afford to lose the war in Ukraine because this would lead to domestic unrest, a civil war, and its ultimate collapse, and he asserted that the Russians will “fight to the end” and will only be satisfied once Ukraine is “fully liberated from the pro-NATO political elites.” He also said that if Russia starts losing the war, it may use nuclear weapons, and he explained that “allowing” Russia to win in Ukraine would actually constitute a victory for the West because it would prevent nuclear war. He said that Ukraine is destined to disappear, whether through a Russian victory or in a nuclear apocalypse that would destroy all of humanity, and he lamented the dissolution of the Soviet Union, which led to Ukraine’s independence. Moreover, Dugin said that the West is the “Antichrist”, the “source of absolute evil”, and that it uses artificial intelligence to “destroy the family, sex, and the nature of human beings”. He explained that Muslims understand that this is true, and that Russian President Vladimir Putin disagrees and rather sees the West as a partner that is behaving aggressively.

On February 22, 2023, the official Hamas media outlet Al-Risala published a video on its Telegram channel providing detailed instructions for carrying out drive-by shooting attacks against Israelis. The instructions include: “Do reconnaissance… Divide roles between the driver and the shooter… Make sure there are no police roadblocks along your route. With your weapon loaded, approach [your target and] open fire suddenly from very close range. Finish off the target. Retreat quickly and carefully.” The video also shows militants simulating several such attacks, including at a bus stop, against pedestrians, and against moving vehicles. In addition, the video features a voice recording of Hussam Aslim, a commander in the Lion’s Den terror group who was killed by Israeli forces earlier that day in Nablus, saying: “Do not put down your guns once we are gone.”

Hizbullah official Abdullah Kassir said on a February 15, 2023 show on Al-Manar TV (Hizbullah-Lebanon) that his motivation for getting married and having children was to “produce soldiers” for the Imam Mahdi, who is the messianic figure in Shi’ite belief. He explained that Sheikh Ragheb Harb, who was a senior Hizbullah commander in the early 1980s, used to say this as well, and the show’s host responded: “This is the main strategic goal.” Kassir also said: “Today, all the young people who wish to get married should take this advice.” Abdullah Kassir has previously served as the chairman of Al-Manar TV’s board, and he served one term as a Hizbullah MP. He currently serves as an assistant to Hashem Safieddine, the head of Hizbullah’ Executive Council.

Molavi Abdul Ghaffar Naqshbandi, a Sunni leader in Iran’s Baluchestan, pledged to avenge the victims of the Zahedan massacre in an October 28, 2022 speech posted on YouTube. Naqshbandi referred to the violent crackdown against protesters in Baluchestan, in which dozens of Baluchis were killed by the Iranian authorities. He said that the people of Baluchestan await the orders of Maulana Abdolhamid, Molavi Abdolhamid Ismaeelzahi, the spiritual leader of Iran’s Sunnis. Naqshabandi added: “I swear to God, we will not rest until we avenge the blood of our children.” He warned the Sunni leaders of Baluchestan against meeting with authorities or participating in any government conferences, marches or elections until the blood of the victims is avenged, otherwise they would be considered traitors to the youth of Zahedan.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi discussed relations between Iran and China in an interview with Chinese official broadcaster CGTN during a visit to the country. He said that both countries “share common positions and interests” on opposing unilateralism and maintaining independence and autonomy. Raisi added: “A stronger Iran is not something that Iran’s enemies want to see, and likewise, a stronger China is not something that some countries are pleased to see.” He said that America imposes sanctions on Iran in order for it to make “concessions on long-term objectives” and that this is a “form of warfare.” Raisi added that the United States seeks to “achieve its goals” by inciting unrest on the streets of Iran and that some European countries are similarly “manipulating” Iranian people’s minds. President Raisi spoke in Persian and English subtitles were provided by CGTN TV. The interview was posted on CGTN’s YouTube channel on February 18, 2023.

At a February 11, 2023 event at the Iranian embassy in Tunis, Tunisia, Rached Ghannouchi, the president of the Tunisian Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated Ennahda Movement and the former Tunisian Speaker of the House, congratulated Iran on the 44th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution. Ghannouchi said that the Islamic Revolution “has played a major role in the Islamic revival across the world.” Iranian Ambassador to Tunisia Mohammad Reza Raouf Sheibani also spoke at the event. A report about the event was aired on Alghadeer TV (Iraq).

Hizbullah’s Al-Manar TV aired a report on Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri’s visit to south Lebanon and the border with Israel on February 10, 2023. According to the report, Iranian Ambassador to Lebanon Mojtaba Amani led the visit and was welcomed by the head of Hizbullah in the Jabal Amil area, Abdallah Nasser. The delegation toured the Iran Garden in Maroun Al-Ras and inspected the views into northern Israel. Bagheri praised Hizbullah for liberating “the land from occupation,” providing Lebanon with “stability, calm, and capabilities.” The delegation commemorated IRGC Qods Force senior officer Hesam Khoshnevis (aka Hassan Shateri), head of the Iranian Committee for the Reconstruction of Lebanon, who was killed in an airstrike attributed to Israel in 2013 and Qods Force commander General Qasem Soleimani, who was killed by the U.S. in 2020.

On February 10, 2023, Al-Mayadeen TV (Lebanon) aired a report about a two-day military exercise held by the Al-Mujahideen Brigades in the Gaza Strip in honor of the 23rd anniversary of the group’s establishment. In the exercise, which involved mock-up targets, the fighters simulated assaulting Israeli military outposts in Israeli territory, kidnapping and killing Israeli soldiers, and seizing and destroying military vehicles. The exercise also involved firing rockets. An Al-Mujahideen Brigades field commander referred to as “Abu Hamza” warned Israel that the group’s forces are “ready and capable” and are “lying in wait” to defeat Israel.