Fatima Al-Harbi

Published: July 09, 2026: 09:46 AM GST Last updated: July 09, 2026: 08:15 PM GST

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One of the most dangerous things that ideological systems and groups can reach is turning the Holy Quran, the book of guidance and mercy, into a tool for political propaganda and sending military messages. When verses become a means to present militias and terrorist organizations in a religious guise that gives them legitimacy and symbolism before their followers, the sanctity of the text is set aside and taken out of context for the sake of political goals.

It is not new for the Iranian regime to employ religion in service of its political, social, and economic goals; it has become part of its official discourse for decades. However, striking on this occasion is the shift to another level of employing religious texts, by selecting specific Quranic verses to convey political and symbolic messages, in a scene that reflects the extent to which political propaganda has infiltrated religious discourse.

It was expected that the Iranian regime would exploit the event religiously and politically, as there was ample time to carefully prepare all these details and build the messages intended to be conveyed to the Iranian interior, allies, and adversaries abroad. In this context, the selection of Quranic verses for each delegation does not appear spontaneous, but rather part of a calculated symbolic discourse carrying political implications beyond the occasion itself.

When the Hezbollah delegation was received with a verse ending with God’s saying: 'Indeed, the party of God are the victorious,' as if the purpose was to bestow a religious significance on the organization by linking its name to the Quranic phrase, granting it symbolism beyond being a political or military actor, and presenting it before its followers and the world in a framework suggesting religious legitimacy and divine selection. Meanwhile, the Hamas delegation was received with the verse: 'Among the believers are men who have been true to their covenant with God,' in a choice suggesting presenting the movement as a model of loyalty and steadfastness to the covenant, thus lending it religious symbolism and enhancing its image. As for the Houthi delegation, the verse was recited before them: 'Muhammad is the Messenger of God; and those with him are severe against the disbelievers, merciful among themselves,' in an attempt to give a religious aura to the movement by hinting at linking it to the Quranic description of the Prophet's companions, a political employment of sacred texts that grants an armed organization religious symbolism not derived from the verse itself, but from the way it is used in this context.

The message here was not religious as much as it was political. Each verse was carefully chosen to bestow religious symbolism on a particular organization, or to convey implicit political messages to other official delegations. Here we see another face of Iranian propaganda, namely employing Quranic verses to serve political goals, an approach we have seen repeated many times. Exploiting sacred texts outside their proper religious and political context not only harms the sanctity of the Quran but also drags religion into serving political agendas, thus affecting Islam's message based on truth and justice.

Religious extremism does not begin with bearing arms, but begins when a party monopolizes the interpretation of sacred texts and makes them exclusive to its political project, classifying supporters as among the people of truth and opponents as outside them. The most dangerous thing that extremists, regardless of their sects or affiliations, do is present themselves as the exclusive representatives of Islam. When the Holy Quran is reduced to a political project, the sanctity of revelation becomes hostage to human agendas, and religion is exploited to legitimize conflicts that do not represent Islam or its message of justice and mercy. When the Quran turns into a tool for propaganda or a means to grant political legitimacy, religious discourse loses its unifying message and becomes a tool for division and polarization, contradicting the fundamental objectives of Islam based on guidance, justice, and mercy.

This approach is not new; terrorist organizations such as ISIS, Al-Qaeda, and others have long been taking verses from the Holy Quran and interpreting them to serve their extremist discourse, to justify violence, recruitment, and grant religious legitimacy to their practices, in violation of the Quran's objectives and its correct interpretation. This deviant employment of religious texts has contributed to distorting the image of Islam globally, to the extent that some societies outside the Muslim world have become entrenched with a false image linking Islam to extremism and terrorism, even though these practices contradict the essence of the religion and its values.

Respecting the Quran begins by separating it from political propaganda. The divine text must remain above parties, above regimes, and above regional conflicts, because it is the word of God, not a tool in the service of any political project, whatever its slogans.

Quoted from 'Al-Bilad'

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