By Ibrahim Al-Marashi
Publication Date: 2026-04-22 14:34:00
While AI technology is new, information warfare is as old as conflict itself. For millennia, humans have used propaganda, deception and psychological operations to influence the decision-making and morale of their opponents. In the 13th century, for example, the Mongols destroyed entire cities just to spread word of mouth to the next, with the goal of breaking morale and forcing them to surrender before troops even arrived.
Technological advances have opened new frontiers in information warfare. From World War II to the Gulf War in 1991, planes dropped leaflets to spread rumors and propaganda. During the Vietnam War, English-language radio broadcasts from Hanoi Hannah (real name Trịnh Thị Ngọ) taunted US troops with lists of their locations and casualties in an attempt to lower morale. Radio propaganda also had a devastating impact when it was used to control the genocide in Rwanda in 1994.
Next came cable television. The 1991 Gulf War was the first major conflict…
