For years we have been talking about the schools in the Gaza Strip that are run by Hamas and where children are taught hatred for Jews and the West, while no one talks about what happens in those run by the Lebanese Hezbollah. A worrying discovery was made in a school in southern Lebanon, where a book published by Hezbollah was found that teaches children “to eliminate the infidels” complete with grim images that reach directly to young and impressionable minds. Hezbollah has often been accused of spreading radical ideologies and promoting a culture of hatred and violence, particularly against those seen as non-believers or enemies of the cause. The presence of such materials in the serious uprisings and further concerns about the influence it could have on future generations and the possible consequences of the radicalization of young people in the region.
For Davide Riccardo RomanoDirector of the Jewish Brigade Museum, «unfortunately the Western world does not understand how the education of hatred by Islamic fundamentalists begins at school. Even some on the left think it is a problem of the poor classes rebelling. It is not true. The poor of the Indian or South American world do not hate us Westerners. They don’t carry out attacks. Hatred is inculcated by fanatical imams and ‘bad teachers’, as is education in martyrdom and terrorism.” This discovery has caused outrage and alarm among those who support peace and coexistence, both in Lebanon and beyond its borders. Teaching children in an environment that glorifies violence and pushes them to see others as “infidels to be eliminated” fuels a dangerous subculture that can only cause disaster in the region. Furthermore, these teachings not only contradict universal principles of education, which should promote understanding and tolerance, but also fuel cycles of violence and hatred. The issue highlights the urgency of reforming education systems in conflict-affected regions to ensure that children are taught values of peace, respect for diversity and human dignity, rather than extremist and violent ideologies. Hezbollah operates a vast network of social institutions in the Shia community in Lebanon, covering sectors such as health, education, finance, welfare and media.
These entities not only support the group’s military infrastructure, but also serve as channels to spread its ideology and consolidate its influence both within the Shiite community and in the country at large. Through these institutions, Hezbollah provides the Shia community with a range of services that, in other nations, would typically be guaranteed by the state, while simultaneously taking advantage of the weaknesses of the Lebanese administration and its historic neglect of this community. In this way, Hezbollah’s civilian infrastructure allows it to maintain a sort of Shiite mini-state within Lebanon, where it exercises direct control over the residents, among whom its military network is also located. As we read in a recent report published by The Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center, Hezbollah manages two networks of private schools within the Shiite community in Lebanon: the al-Mahdi school network, of a more general orientation, and the al-Mahdi network. -Mustafa, whose name means “the chosen one”, a title referring to the prophet Muhammad, who is considered more elitist. Children and young people, from kindergarten to high school graduation, attend these Hezbollah-run schools. In these institutes, students are subjected to indoctrination based on radical Shiite concepts, inspired by the ideology of the Iranian Islamic Revolution.
The indoctrination includes the glorification of the figures of Khomeini and Khamenei, support for Hezbollah and the “resistance” (i.e. the fight against Israel), as well as the teaching of the value of the shahada, self-sacrifice, or the willingness to become a martyr (shahid) and the veneration of those who lost their lives fighting in the ranks of Hezbollah The goal of Hezbollah’s education system is to train a new generation of young Shiites inspired by the ideology of the Iranian Revolution, some of whom may decide to join Hezbollah once he completes his studies.
@reproduction reserved
