Hojjatieh

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Hojjatieh is a semi-clandestine Iranian organization which is radically anti-Bahá'í and anti-Sunni. The group flourished during the 1979 revolution that ousted the Shah and installed an Islamic government in his place. However it was banned in 1983 by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the father of the revolution.

Some claim Hojjatieh's views centre on the belief that the return of the Mahdi, the 12th Shi'ite Imam, cannot be hastened, but that such a return is an impending physical event. The corollary that only then can a genuine Islamic republic be established, earned them their persecution under Khomeini. Some assert that the view that they believe in spreading chaos in order to hasten the return of the Mahdi is a misunderstanding, and allegedly spread by critics of Ahmadinejad to attempt to make him appear dangerous. Those who adhere to this perspective claim Hojjatieh is a millenarian group who put great stock on the return of the Mahdi and the idea of such a return bringing happiness to true belivers. Such beliefs are in Iran generally associated with superstitious, working class and peasant Muslims and so are derided and looked down upon by the traditional Sh'ite hierarchy, whether conservative or reformist. [1]

Others think Hojjatieh indeed has a sinister side. Former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated in an interview on CNN's Glenn Beck Program on November 17th, 2006 that the Hojjatieh influence on Iran's leadership can be analogized to David Koresh and the Branch Davidian cult. He said "I was looking for an analogy to try to explain to Americans what it is that is so dangerous about Iran acquiring nuclear weapons. You remember those crazy people in Waco, Texas?... this is that kind of cult. It`s the cult of the Mahdi, a holy man that disappeared a thousand years ago. And the president of Iran believes that he`s supposed to -- he was put here on Earth to bring this holy man back in a great religious war between the true Muslim believers and the infidels. And millions will die in this Apocalypse, and the Muslim believers will go to heaven.... Ahmadinejad, the president of Iran, is first trying to develop nuclear weapons and then going about his mad fantasy of global conflict." ^[1]

This echoes other concerns voiced in the media that the current president of Iran Mahmud Ahmadinejad is an advocate of Hojjatieh through the influence of his mentor, the Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi, which some claim is currently the highest ranking member in the organization. An article in the New York Times suggested that this was spread by his enemies to make Ahmadinejad appear more radical than he is.^[2] Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi has denounced this claim, and has said that if anyone finds a connection between him and Hojjatieh, he will denounce everything he stands for.^[3]