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For Mehdi Ghadimi, the ideology behind Iran’s ruling system shouldn’t be theoretical. It was one thing he was taught from childhood.
“You have been instructed you’re a half a small group chosen by God… to revive God’s faith and battle to defend it,” the Iranian journalist instructed Fox Information Digital, describing the message repeated in faculties, mosques and state media.
That early indoctrination, he stated, framed the world in stark phrases: a divine battle between good and evil, with Iran’s management positioned on the heart of a non secular mission.
Iran’s ruling system is commonly described in political phrases, however critics and former insiders say its core is way extra radical — a perception construction rooted in non secular absolutism, messianic expectation and a worldview that leaves little room for compromise.
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A banner that includes Iran’s new supreme chief, Mojtaba Khamenei, and senior commanders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is displayed in Tehran, March 14, 2026. (Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu)
As a brand new era of commanders rises inside the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps following current army blows below Operation Epic Fury, analysts warn that this ideology might turn out to be much more entrenched.
Figures akin to Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Ahmad Vahidi are sometimes cited as a part of a cohort formed by years of battle in Iraq and throughout the area — one which sees faith, safety and survival as inseparable.
A perception system, not only a authorities
On the heart of that worldview is the idea within the Mahdi — a messianic determine in Shiite Islam whose return is predicted to usher in a closing period of justice after chaos.
Twelver Shiism is the dominant perception for Shias, the Mahdi, recognized because the twelfth Imam, is alive however hidden and can in the future return. Iran’s political system positions the supreme chief as his caretaker.
Critics say that framework offers political authority a non secular dimension that may make it troublesome to problem.
Major faculty women in conventional headscarves sit in a classroom, Tehran, Iran, Oct. 1, 1997. (Kaveh Kazemi/Getty Photos)
“For the mullahs in Iran, the Mahdi concept is much less about private religion and extra about energy,” stated Lisa Daftari, overseas coverage analyst and editor-in-chief at The Overseas Desk. “They use it to counsel that the supreme chief’s views will not be simply political beliefs, however carry a type of divine weight.”
“The system is about up in order that disagreeing with the chief will be portrayed as questioning the Hidden Imam himself,” she stated.
“That turns extraordinary coverage debates into one thing virtually untouchable… you’re not arguing with a politician, you’re seen as pushing again in opposition to a sacred determine.”
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Commanders and members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps meet with Iran’s Supreme Chief Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Tehran on Aug. 17, 2023. (Workplace of the Iranian Supreme Chief/WANA/Reuters)
No actual moderates
Ghadimi argues that this construction leaves little room for real political range.
“Teams labeled as ‘average,’ ‘reformist,’ or ‘pro-Western’ are created in order that the West can negotiate with them,” he stated.
“Nobody inside the construction of the Islamic Republic thinks about something apart from defeating the Western world and establishing Islamic dominance globally.”
From perception to motion
For Iran knowledgeable Daftari, the Mahdi doctrine additionally offers a versatile justification for coverage.
“Plenty of insiders know completely nicely that this language is getting used strategically,” she stated. “The Mahdi story offers the management a approach to declare ethical and non secular cowl for selections which might be typically about preserving the regime or increasing its attain.”
“Once they discuss ‘making ready the bottom’ for the Mahdi, that phrase will be stretched to cowl virtually something — crushing protests, backing militias overseas or asking folks to simply accept extra financial ache.”
“This non secular framing makes compromise a lot tougher,” she added. “In the event you persuade your base that you’re finishing up a holy mission… backing down will be painted as a betrayal of God’s plan.”
A billboard depicting Iran’s supreme leaders since 1979 is displayed above a freeway in Tehran on March 10, 2026. (AFP/Through Getty Photos)
A worldview formed early
Ghadimi stated that message is bolstered from childhood, shaping how generations perceive their position in society.
In schools, media and mosques, he stated, ideology was embedded into on a regular basis life, leaving little area for various narratives.
That framing, analysts say, helps clarify how the system sustains itself even below strain.
It additionally contributes to a worldview by which battle shouldn’t be short-term, however half of a bigger, ongoing battle.
“The Islamic authorities, based mostly by itself interpretation of the Quran, considers itself obligated to implement Islamic regulation throughout all the world,” Ghadimi instructed Fox Information Digital, including that the regime “sees itself because the chief of this perception globally.”
“They harbor hatred towards Iranians and Jews, whom they regard as enemies of Islam since its very starting, and so they think about killing them—akin to on Oct. 7 and within the current killings in Iran — to be divinely rewarded acts, very similar to the beliefs as soon as held by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi,” he stated.
“Nobody inside the construction of the Islamic Republic thinks about something apart from defeating the Western world and establishing Islamic dominance globally,” Ghadimi stated.
In that framework, critics say, Iran shouldn’t be merely pursuing nationwide pursuits however appearing inside what it sees as a broader non secular mandate.
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On this image launched by an official web site of the workplace of the Iranian supreme chief, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stands as air power commanders salute throughout their assembly in Tehran, Feb. 7, 2017. (Workplace of the Iranian Supreme Chief/AP)
Violence and perception
Some critics argue that inside this framework, violence can tackle non secular that means.
“They think about killing them… to be divinely rewarded acts,” Ghadimi stated.
Nonetheless, analysts say the mix of messianic perception and absolutist ideology creates a system by which confrontation shouldn’t be solely anticipated, however justified.
A cycle with no straightforward exit
An Iranian official rejected these characterizations and warned that financial collapse and destruction brought on by battle might drive long-term resentment.
“If a rustic is become ruins, poverty spreads. Out of such poverty comes hatred, resentment and a need for revenge, and this cycle of hostility can proceed for years. It isn’t appropriate to suppose that all the pieces will merely finish the day after a ceasefire. Even when there have been no hostile authorities left in place, folks inside society who’ve misplaced all the pieces should still be pushed to hunt retribution.”
For Ghadimi, the difficulty isn’t just how Iran behaves, however the way it understands itself.
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Folks collect in Revolution Sq. to mourn Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed Feb. 28 in a joint Israel-U.S. operation, in Tehran, Iran, on March 1, 2026. (Kaveh Kazemi/Getty Photos)
If the system is rooted in a perception that blends faith, energy and mission, critics say, then insurance policies like repression at residence and confrontation overseas will not be short-term techniques however structural options.
And if moderation inside that system is restricted, as some argue, then the problem for policymakers shouldn’t be merely negotiation, however understanding the ideology that drives it.
