An utterly bizarre alliance indeed, of course, since for one thing the far left is atheistic, condemning religion as atavistic and irrational ("the opium of the people") and despising its followers as benighted and superstitious, and for another thing the far-left is avowedly egalitarian, upholding the rights of women against "patriarchal tyranny".
It's long been predicted that Iran's Revolution of 1979, which exchanged the rule of the Shah for that of the mullahs, will prove far more reaching in its effects, geographically and culturally, than was the French Revolution of 1789, itself a seminal event in world history, at least as far as the Western Hemisphere was concerned.
The dedication of radical Islam to the destruction of non-Muslim civilisation is clearly seen in a chilling video of the speech on 23 September in which an influential Iranian, Hassan Rahimpour Azghadi, an ideologue close to the ruling administration, outlined his thoughts on the future direction of Iran's foreign policy, and exhorted war veterans to prepare to take the Islamic struggle everywhere, including "the heart of Europe".
Azghadi shows every sign of being as zealous as Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, even down to the belief in the eventual coming of the Twelfth Imam, and the necessary prelude to that event, about which I've blogged here and here.
And the bizarre antics of Islamism's far-left allies is clearly seen in the recent decision of the leftist-dominated Copenhagen city council to permit the construction of a huge mega-mosque funded by an Iranian radical Shia organisation:
'Unlike most mosques in Europe, which cater to Sunni Muslims, the mosque in Copenhagen pertains to Shia Islam. The mosque is being financed by the Islamic Republic of Iran; critics say that theocrats in Tehran intend to use the mosque to establish a recruiting center for the militant Shia Muslim group, Hezbollah in Europe.
Critics of the Shia mosque have warned local politicians that the building will be owned by the Iranian regime for use as a propaganda center as well as a platform from which to recruit impressionable Muslim immigrant youths for service to Hezbollah. But the Copenhagen city council states that who pays for building the mosque is none of its concern.
The Copenhagen mosque is, in fact, being built by the Ahlul Beit Foundation, a radical Shia Muslim proselytizing and political lobbying group run by the Iranian government. Ahlul Beit already runs around 70 Islamic centers around the world, and has, as its primary goal, the promoting of the religious and political views of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Ahlul-Beit is opposed to all brands of Islam that compete with the form of Islam dictated by theocrats in Iran: the organization has called for the persecution of Sunni Muslims, Sufi Muslims, and Alawites as well as all secular and moderate Muslims. The organization is also vociferously opposed to the integration of Muslim immigrants into their host societies.
Ahlul Beit is especially focused on spreading Islamic Sharia law beyond the Middle East; its centers in Africa and Asia, for example, have been used to radicalize local Muslim communities. In a typical quid-pro-quo arrangement, the organization offers money to the poor who then convert to Shia Islam and are subjected to religious training by Iranian-backed Imams. The group has been banned in at least a dozen countries.
In Europe, Ahlul Beit mosques are usually presented to the general public as centers for cultural and sports activities, but in practice they are often used by Iranian intelligence to monitor Iranians living abroad as well as to harass Iranian dissidents.'
Read more here. And tremble.
