Iran’s Revolutionary Guard is using creepy imagery to recruit volunteers to fight in Gaza

Iran's Revolutionary Guard seems to be taking a novel approach to war recruitment - they've gone online with their "Al-Aqsa Flood" campaign, trying to round up volunteers, even including children, to fight alongside Hamas in their tiff with Israel. 

What

The genesis of this recruitment drive can be traced back to a violent operation conducted by Hamas, known as the "Al-Aqsa Flood," in Israel on October 7. 

Shortly thereafter, Iran's Revolutionary Guard launched a parallel online campaign bearing the same name, seemingly aiming to persuade young Iranian men and boys to align themselves with the Palestinian armed group and participate in their war efforts against Israel.

The campaign

The campaign is plastered all over the regime's mouthpieces, like websites cozy with the Revolutionary Guards and the state broadcaster.

It has raised significant concerns, especially given that it appears to target not only adult volunteers but also children. However, it's important to note that the campaign has not gained much traction among anti-regime Iranians, who remain critical of the government's propaganda efforts.

• A prominent message was displayed during broadcasts, calling on viewers to sign up and declare their readiness to be deployed to Palestine to fight against Israel.
• A short message was circulated to Iranians, urging them to express their willingness to join the cause via SMS. 
• In an attempt to reinforce the campaign, the regime even introduced a website under the same name.

And it seems like they've made some progress, or so they claim. Iranian television boasts that they've managed to round up over 3 million ready-to-be-deployed volunteers for their cause.

Creepy imagery

The campaign has been employing striking imagery (that borders on disturbing) to convey its message. 

A poster features a young boy, seemingly in his teens, dressed in military fatigues and standing in front of Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque. 

The child is adorned with the symbolic pro-Palestine keffiyeh scarf around his neck and wears a pin bearing the portrait of General Qassem Soleimani on his jacket. Soleimani, who led the Revolutionary Guard's elite Al-Quds unit, was killed by American forces in Baghdad in 2020.

Historical symbolism

The imagery and symbolism utilized in this campaign serve as a stark reminder of Iran's tragic losses during its protracted war with Iraq in the 1980s.

The war resulted in the deaths of over half a million Iranians, including thousands of young boys who were sent to the frontlines with a key around their necks, with the dubious promise that it would unlock the gates to paradise.

Repurcussions

The repercussions of the ongoing conflict have already extended to the West Bank, where there have been limited artillery exchanges between Israel and Hezbollah. Iranian authorities have consistently threatened that if the war extends to other fronts, they will become directly involved. 

Israel, on the other hand, has put its foot down, warning that if Hezbollah decides to up the ante, they'll be giving Iran a piece of their mind - and their military might.  This raises concerns about the potential for the ongoing conflict to widen and intensify in the near future.