Daily Mail: As the flag was raised in Qom, the mosque speakers called, ‘O Allah, hasten your custodian reappearance,’ a reference to the end-times reappearance of the Mahdi.
In Shia Islam, the faith of Iran, the Mahdi is a divine figure who will appear to bring a Day of Judgement and rid the world of evil.
According to local reports it is the first time in the Qom mosque’s history – a holy site since the Middle Ages – that the red flag has been raised over the building. Read More …
Opinion: In Shia Islam the red flags, which have also been flown at demonstrations in Tehran, symbolize blood spilled unjustly and serve as a call to avenge the person who is slain.
The Shiite clerics of Iran believe that Mahdi is the son of the 11th imam Al-Hasan al-Askari. He is called the “hidden Imam” and the ‘twelfth Imam’. The clerics argue that Muhammad al Mahdi was born thousands of years ago and disappeared to reappear later when apocalyptic chaos comes upon the earth.
Unlike western Christians, the Iranians take Islamic eschatology very seriously. Iran’s Khamenei claims to have met personally with the Mahdi, and high ranking officials feel it is their solemn duty to bring about a war of conquest to establish the caliphate.
Bible prophecy does not indicate that Armageddon (World War III) is near. Regional wars like Psalm 83 come first.