“The rise of the military doctrine of Mahdi-ism is the biggest single threat to the world’s Jewish communities and Israel’s existence”, says global think tank.
By Batya Jerenberg, World Israel News
An Iranian-linked school in London is teaching its students a popular song about the Muslim apocalypse, when all Jews must die, a Jewish Chronicle (JC) investigation revealed Thursday.
The British paper received access to a video filmed several months ago, showing dozens of children ages 8-15 in the Islamic Republic of Iran School (IRIS) in London, standing in rows and mouthing lyrics that pledge an “oath of loyalty as a warrior and servant” to the Mahdi.
The Mahdi is a messianic figure in Islamic belief who is to appear at the end of times to rid the world of evil and injustice.
Some scenes in the video were filmed at the Islamic Centre of England (ICE), an institution currently under investigation by the Charity Commission.
Kasra Aarabi, the head of the Iran Programme at the Tony Blair Institute, a global think tank that aims to “help political leaders build open, inclusive and prosperous societies in an increasingly interconnected world,” told The JC that the “cult” of the Mahdi doctrine is being used by the mullahcracy to radicalize Shiite Muslims – and is a great danger specifically to Jews.
“It is antisemitic to its core”, he said, “because it holds that before the Mahdi can return, Israel must be destroyed and all the world’s Jews put to death.”
In today’s modern world, this means the use of armed forces, ballistic missiles, and nuclear weapons as well, if Iran succeeds in its nuclear program, he said.
“The rise of the military doctrine of Mahdi-ism is the biggest single threat to the world’s Jewish communities and Israel’s existence,” he added.
The children also vow allegiance to Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, who has often publicly stated his desire and promise to wipe Israel off the face of the earth.
The school is located close to several synagogues and Jewish centers, which has “raised serious concerns among community security officials,” the paper said.
In describing the song, the report noted, regime mouthpiece Iran Press News Agency has written, “‘Hello Commander’ educates the new generation on the ambitions of the Islamic Revolution and encourages them to be guardians to protect those ideals, which is seen as a step towards promoting the revolution among the generation to come.”
There are several versions of the song, with more militaristic ones played in Iran that clearly talk of “treading the path” of the late Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani.
For over two decades, Soleimani led the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps’ Quds Force, which planned and helped execute Tehran’s extraterritorial terrorist activities. He was assassinated in a U.S. drone strike in Iraq in 2020, with the aid of Israeli intelligence.
The JC reported that Ofsted, the UK’s Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills, called the school “inadequate” in its latest, March inspection, saying that the institution’s officials had not demonstrated that they had the “knowledge and skills” to made certain that proper educational standards were met.