The subtle inclusion of the assassinated Qassem #Soleimani in an supposedly apolitical mural on the occasion of the commemoration of the "Decade of Dignity" and "Girls' Day" in the latest mural on the #ValiAsr billboard in Teheran is an excellent example ... 1/7

... of a current soft propaganda approach in the vast mural landscape of Tehran. Kevin Schwartz (via @Orientalniustav) and I already wrote in our article @jadaliyya on the #ValiAsr billboard's capacity to diversify the type of regime messaging. 2/7 https://www.jadaliyya.com/Details/41116 

We have pointed out there the great significance that #Soleimani's martyrdom immediately after his death took on in this new style of propaganda. Since then his picture has appeared in numerous other murals, mostly in a very subtle way. (Though sometimes also in the clouds.) 3/7

It is remarkable how #Soleimani's picture is now inserted on various occasions in the murals of the #ValiAsr billboard. For example, he is presented as a unifying iconographic element in two murals that propagate social distance and national unity amidst coronavirus crisis. 4/7

In the latest mural, #Soleimani's portrait is now barely visible but certainly presented as an integral part of family life. Once again, he is presented as a hero of and for the people. However, since he is an actor in whose biography #Iran's contested history ... 5/7

... got concentrated, he is also a perfect iconographic reference to national unity and a honest representative of the Islamic Republic's ideology. In this way, a supposedly apolitical mural becomes a fascinating example for a current style of soft propaganda in Iran. 6/7

For more information on the #ValiAsr billboard in Teheran, the significance of martyrdom, and the need for a softer propaganda approach in #Iran, see this thread and our article on @jadaliyya. 7/7 https://twitter.com/olmo_goelz/status/1260974036923953152?s=20