Tehran billboards mocking Trump chronicle Iran's war with the US and Israel

Mixed · 2Huge billboards in Tehran that mock US President Donald Trump and show American drones under an Iranian soldier's boot are providing a chronicle of Iran's war with the United States and Israel, AFP reported. 1 2 Mixed · 2AFP got rare access to Khaneh-ye Tarrahan (Designers' House), a studio that makes anti-US billboards for prominent sites such as Valiasr Square. The studio works under one of the country's biggest state-run media conglomerates, and the billboards are sponsored by the government and used to convey its messages. 1 2 Centre · 1Its best-known piece shows Trump's lips sewn shut and his mouth muzzled by the Strait of Hormuz, captioned "At the breaking point". It appeared in May, and studio manager Mostafa Kafaei, 32, said there was initial hesitation about using such a large image of Trump's face before the team judged it would be exceptionally powerful. 2

Mixed · 2Other billboards include one from a different studio showing Trump trapped in a magician's box with a Coca-Cola and a hamburger, captioned "Blink, you're gone!". It refers to a July incident in Turkey in which Trump was reportedly moved from Air Force One to another aircraft on a catering truck because of a security threat. Another shows an Iranian soldier stepping on a US underwater drone, marking a recent "Hormuz catch" by the Revolutionary Guards, with the message that business is good. 2 1 Mixed · 2Further designs show a mythical warrior amid raging seas as US warships burn, with a message that "Satan's army will drown" in the Gulf, and Trump grasping at a dollar bill underwater in a nod to Nirvana's "Nevermind" cover, captioned "GREAT VICTORY! Strait of Hormuz". Billboards glorifying Iran, the late supreme leader Ali Khamenei and the slain Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah have also appeared. 2 1 Mixed · 2Kafaei said the team mobilises when news breaks, turns urgent posters around in a few days with teams of up to about eight people, and works mostly in Photoshop. He said it is "highly proficient in AI" and uses engines such as ChatGPT and Nano Banana. 1 2

Mixed · 2Asked why Trump features so often, Kafaei said he "is a media personality" and that the studio responds in kind to his actions. He likened this to facing an adversary "constantly firing at us". He also said the billboards help people who "may not be politically minded" grasp the context of events in the country. 1 2 Mixed · 2AFP gave the background that Iran has blockaded commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz since the war began in late February with US-Israeli strikes, while the US military has kept up a counter-blockade of Iranian ports. 1 2 Mixed · 2Passers-by quoted by AFP described the effect. Retiree Mahmoudreza Rezaei, 53, said a "Satan's wedding gift" billboard, which he took to be aimed at Trump after an alleged US attack in the south last month that killed several people at a wedding, was riddle-like. Pharmacy worker Sahar Jahedi, 24, said such billboards can keep people informed while many are struggling to survive. 2 1