Iran and the Final Grand Jihad

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The documentary also asserts that the revolution in Egypt and the Muslim Brotherhood’s gains are part of this End Times scenario. Iran and the Brotherhood come from different branches of Islam but their struggles are tied. A senior Brotherhood official recently attended a conference in Tehran where he praised Ahmadinejad and said the region needed more leaders like him. The March 19 vote in favor of the constitutional amendments is a boon to the Islamists, as it paves the way for parliamentary elections as early as June and presidential elections as soon as September. This gives minimal time for political forces opposed to the Brotherhood to mobilize and campaign.

In Jordan, protests are smaller in comparison to the rest of the region but they are slowly getting larger, are consistently held and clashes are increasing. Here, too, the Muslim Brotherhood has a very powerful presence. The inevitable removal of Yemeni President Saleh, a staunch enemy of Iran, is also opening doors to the Islamists. The Muslim Brotherhood’s affiliate, Islah, will gain politically and the Yemeni government will be too weak to stand in the way of the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels, whose fight is referred to as a “holy revolution” in the regime’s documentary. The Houthis stated recently that their goal is the overthrow of the Yemeni government.

The regime’s film does not say that Al-Qaeda is part of this prophetic jihad and Osama Bin Laden’s picture is on a wall of Iran’s enemies. This does not mean that the terrorist group won’t benefit from this instability. Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula is already expanding its base in Yemen, seizing a town, a strategic mountain and a weapons factory after the police presence in the area was reduced to cope with the government’s crisis. In Libya, at least one rebel commander belongs to the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group, which is tied to Al-Qaeda, and admits that about 25 of his fighters battled Coalition forces in Iraq. He also says that he was arrested in Pakistan in 2002 for fighting in Afghanistan against invading forces. CNN describes the Muslim Brotherhood branch in Libya as “energized” despite its lack of a presence in Benghazi.

This does not mean that everything is following the Iranian regime’s End Times vision. The uprising in Syria is clearly not in Iran’s interest and neither are the protests in the Gaza Strip and the declining popularity of Hamas. Recent terrorist attacks on Israel may be a desperate attempt to stabilize these situations and/or could be an opening salvo in this envisioned final jihad. Public pressure and protests in Sudan have been enough for President Omar Bashir, an ally of Iran, to announce he will not stay in office beyond his term. And of course, there is the opposition the Iranian regime also faces, though the film indicates that this is seen as a sign of the Hidden Imam’s reappearance as well.

Almost everywhere the Iranian regime looks in the region, it sees vindication of its apocalyptic worldview and signs that the final grand jihad it is meant to lead is imminent. The revolutions in the area are inspiring to Arab peoples seeking justice and freedom but they are just as inspiring to Iran and its Islamist allies. The Middle East is entering a dangerous new phase.

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  • davarino

    And O helped Iran's crazies stay in power by not siding with the rebels there. Thanks O.

    Now maybe Donald Trumps efforts will be fruitful in making O cough up his "birth" certificate. It only takes an hour or so to get you BC. Where is it O?

    He does not care about America's interests. He is taking this country apart one piece at a time.

  • RiverFred

    Do you think Obozo will stop Iran from acquiring nukes?

  • wileycayote

    The Muslim Brotherhood has a friend in the White House.

    • al Kidya

      Ahmadinejad also has a friend in the Whitehouse.

  • jaythehistorian

    I know Iran's leadership is quite insane . But why would they want to see their country obliterated from the face of the earth which will happen if Iran has a war with Israel. Israel can shut off Iran's radar and air defense systems long enough to turn Iran into the largest sheet of glass in world history.

  • john gerard

    "to turn Iran into the largest sheet of glass in world history".

    that's beautifully put. I wish i'd thought of that…

  • Wesley69

    A wonder that more people haven't commented on this important article. It may be that most readers don’t believe any government could be so committed to national suicide.

    The ineptitude of Obama's Mideast policy and the aggressive nature of the Iranian regime will plunge this world into another World War. As Radical Islam springs up in place of the hoped for democracies, as Iran moves closer to possessing a nuclear capacity , it will be the hatred of Israel that will unite Sunni and Shia.

    Call it a Caliphate or whatever, but it is not simply a dictatorship. It is a government based upon a religious ideology that there can be only one. With such a government there is no compromise. What Obama and the West have tried is appeasement, which has only emboldened the fanatics. As smart as they claim to be, Obama and other Western leaders refuse, out of arrogance, to learn the lessons of history when one tries to appease a dictator.

    Maybe they truly believe that once Israel disappears, the forces of Islam will suddenly become model citizens of the world. Maybe they truly believe there is a Never-Never Land.