Religious zealots and peace in the Middle East: No. Nope. No way.

 

I've known for years about Iran's spiritual and temporal leaders, the Mullahs, and their belief (to a greater or lesser extent) in the return of the last Imam of Twelver Shi'ite Islam.  One article summarizes contemporary Iranian beliefs as follows:

The Mahdi is expected to appear when the world is wracked by utter chaos and war. Many Sunnis also believe that the Mahdi will come in such a judgment day scenario, but believe that he has not been born yet.

The Twelver beliefs have raised concern in conjunction with Iran's steeped interest in furiously pressing forward with its nuclear program, combined with threats against Israel and the West. Critics of the Islamic Republic allege that Ahmadinejad and the Supreme Leader would even go so far as to hasten a nuclear showdown and cataclysmic strike—perhaps an attack on Israel and inevitable retaliation—to hasten the arrival of the 12th Imam. Ahmadinejad has even called for the reappearance of the 12th Imam from the podium of the United Nations General Assembly. During his speeches within Iran, Ahmadinejad has said that the main mission of the Islamic Revolution is to pave the way for the reappearance of the 12th Imam.

There's more at the link.

Unfortunately for the rest of us, there's a similarly eschatological belief among some Jewish groups.

According to various media outlets, Jewish groups in Israel are preparing the sacrifice of a red heifer on the Mount Of Olives overlooking the Temple Mount. Speculation is that the sacrifice will take place on April 22nd during Passover in an act that Judaism deems is necessary to purify the ground on which the Third Temple must be built to bring forth their Messiah. The purification of the ground the Third Temple would require the destruction of the Al Aqsa Mosque which stands there now. Looking to materialize that prophecy will not only to provoke even more religious and cultural strife between Jews and Muslims in Israel and throughout the world but increase volatility in a region whose political instability represents perhaps the greatest threat to the mankind today.

The dictate requiring the sacrifice of the red heifer is part of a ritual set in chapter 19 of the Book Of Numbers, The Red Heifer And The Cleaning Waters, which deems that "a red heifer without defect or blemish and that has never been under a yoke" must be sacrificed before the temple can rise again. Performing that sacrifice was the impetus behind Uvne Jerusalem importing 5 red angus cattle from the Texas in 2022. To circumvent export laws preventing US cattle exports to Israel, Uvne Jerusalem member Yitshak Mamo declared the red heifers as his pets, undertaking an arduous task to bring them to the Holy Land and prepare them for sacrifice. Uvne Jerusalem is one of many groups encompassed by the Temple Movement that has swept across Israel. The mission of these groups is to advance the the creation of the Third Temple which itself is preceded by the sacrifice of the red heifer to purify the temple mount. The accomplishment of stage one of that mission appears to be on the horizon according to others in the Temple Movement.

Again, more at the link.

So, Iran's Shi'ite Muslim government appears to regard it as a religious imperative to destroy Israel:  and certain Jewish groups in Israel regard it as a religious imperative to build the Third Temple, which necessarily involves the destruction of the Al Aqsa Mosque, the third-holiest site in all of Islam.  Can we say "religious world war", or what?

Islam is the second largest religion in the world in terms of numbers of adherents (currently estimated at about 1.9 billion).  If their third holiest site is destroyed, they'll paint for war.  Similarly, if Israel is destroyed or seriously threatened, it has many allies across the world, and Jewish influence in many states is significant;  so it would not be simply abandoned to its fate.  I think such a conflict would be the irresistible force versus the immovable object.  There's no saying who would win, or what the ultimate outcome would be.  Israel undoubtedly has enough nuclear weapons at its disposal to neutralize Iran;  but if it uses them, other Islamic nations will instantly move to acquire them, and will no longer feel any restraint against using them against Israel, which they will not allow to dominate them.

If you need a recipe for disaster, I think there's one being cooked up in the Middle East right now . . .

Peter