The conflict in the Middle East has entered its fifth day, with American and Israeli officials pushing rhetoric that suggests the campaign against Iran is a religious war. On Tuesday, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) condemned the Pentagon’s use of this rhetoric, deeming it “dangerous” and “anti-Muslim”.
The United States and Israel began their attack on Iran on Saturday and have continued to carry out strikes on Iran since then. In retaliation, Iran has hit back at targets in Israel, and US military assets in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Iraq, and Cyprus.
A US watchdog has reported that US troops have been told the war is intended to “induce the biblical end of times”. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also recently stated that Iran is run by “religious fanatic lunatics”.
Official Statements
US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said: “Crazy regimes like Iran, hell-bent on prophetic Islamic delusions, cannot have nuclear weapons.” CAIR claimed that Hegseth’s words are “an apparent reference to Shia beliefs about religious figures arising near the end times”.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu referenced the Torah, comparing Iran with an ancient biblical enemy, the Amalekites. “We read in this week’s Torah portion, ‘Remember what Amalek did to you.’ We remember – and we act,” Netanyahu said.
Regional Context
Jolyon Mitchell, a professor at Durham University in the UK, told Al Jazeera that leaders are using theological beliefs to “justify action, mobilise political opinion, and leverage support”. Mitchell said: “Many on both sides of this conflict believe that they have God on their side. God is enlisted in this conflict, as with many others, to support acts of violence.”
Ibrahim Abusharif, an associate professor at Northwestern University in Qatar, told Al Jazeera that domestic mobilisation refers to rallying a country’s own people. Leaders can frame conflict as religious and hence morally clear and urgent, rallying public support, he said.
International Response
CAIR said that every American should be “deeply disturbed by the ‘holy war’ rhetoric” being spread by the US military, Hegseth, and Netanyahu to justify the war on Iran. The organisation added that Mr Hegseth’s derisive comment about “Islamist prophetic delusions” was unacceptable.
Source: Al Jazeera
