Mohsen Araki replaces Ayatollah Tashkiri

Mehriran.de - Iran increases its religious and cultural activities abroad. What does this mean for Europe?

The discussions about nuclear research and possible nuclear weapons between the Western nations and Iran have failed on the broader line. Certain observers and Iran experts have for years been foretelling that these talks were a waste of time as well as the associated escalations.

In Syria, there is now an open civil war. The Iran-backed regime of Bashar al-Assad is under severe pressure in Damascus by its opponents. At the same time, the United States don’t tolerate a blockage of the Strait of Hormuz by Iran and has beefed up its presence in the Gulf.

Are these the last resources of the U.S. superpower to force Iran to give in into the 33-year power struggle over the region? Time after time, we hear warning from high military security advisors to attack the military dwarf, but ideological giant Iran. One fears the sly asymmetric fighting style of the Shiite holy warriors.

In this roar, subtle changes in Iran and their potential impact easily go under.

The army of the cultural-religious confidence trickster

Ayatollah Khomeini's concept of state rule of the jurist does not only include the limited area of ​​Iran or the region or the community of Muslims, but cover the entire world - the World Caliphate led by a holy Imam. Since then an army of mullahs and philosophers have spread in the Western and Eastern world to plant the ideology of a Shiite state of divine justice in the minds of intellectuals and the oppressed. In addition to the Al-Quds Brigades, that initiate military-intelligence activities abroad, there are many organizations that are responsible for exporting Iran's state ideology in a soft way. In addition to Islamic centers, the International Forum for Islamic Schools of Thought (World Forum for Proximity of Islamic Schools of Thought) is one of the most active organizations, which attribute to itself the "Islamic awakening" in the Arab countries. Islamic centers can be found in many European countries. They are controlled directly from Iran by Ali Khamenei. The former leaders of the Islamic centers are Ali Khamenei’s deputies on site. One of the most active and best-networked ayatollahs, who has run such a center, was Mohsen Araki. Araki was a member of the Iran Council of Experts, and especially leader of the Islamic Centre in London until 2004, where he was very active in the organization of conferences and other events. After Ayatollah Tashkiri resigned early July 2012 from his post as head of the International Forum for Islamic Schools of thought, Khamenei assigned the experienced and in West well connected Mohsen Araki. Tashkiri performed very well in the region, less in the West. Araki masters Arabic, Persian and English and made himself a name in academic circles through various religious philosophy publications. His task will be to strengthen the Shiite positions in the West.

If European politicians have understood the nature of Iran’s ideology, they will be alerted by such announcement. Howling and yelling in the political field has also a diversionary tactic as well. The important decisions are usually made in the background.