When War Intersects with Eschatology, It is Never Good

The assassination of Ayatollah Khamenei is the single greatest strategic blunder in modern US history.

By killing him, the US and Israel didn’t just eliminate a leader; they fulfilled a 1,400-year-old prophecy and created a martyr whose shadow will haunt the West for decades.… pic.twitter.com/AylDxzYjHV

— S͎a͎l͎a͎d͎i͎n͎🇸🇴⚖️🕋✍️ (@InaHassan3) March 3, 2026

Way to create a holy war 

I suggest that you click through to the Ecch (Tweet), but you can also look at this from Juan Cole, where he says much the same thing.

Dr. Cole is one of the preeminent academics on Islam, Shia Islam, and the Arab world.

Basically, the US actions seem almost calculated to check boxes for the Shia vision of end of times. and the return of the 12th Imam 

Short version:

• He was assassinated during Ramadan, just as the first Imam was. 
• He family was killed as well, just as was Husayn at Karbala.
• It feeds into the narrative of the oppressed and the oppressor which is central to Shia Islam.

This gives credibility to a man who was widely loathed and ignored until a few days ago. 

It also turns out that this also plays into more general end of times theology present across all branches of Islam, which is why we are seeing massive protests in predominantly Sunni nations, most notably Pakistan, as well. 

Even if Iran were to capitulate tomorrow, (it won't) in the minds of a significant portion of the world's population, this is the start of a holy war.