Mona Alami

Pro-Iranian militias, Hezbollah supporters as well as Hezbollah, have linked the war in Syria, in Iraq, and now in Yemen to the return of Imam Mahdi (Messiah). This eschatological interpretation of the ongoing conflict by Shiite militias close to Iran falls within Tehran’s successful regional recruitment drive and its intent to create cohesive and local militias capable of facing strong opposition, outside that government’s direct regional sphere of influence.