IDF troops patrolling villages and towns in southern Lebanon under the military's operational control have uncovered weapons, terrorist infrastructure, and publications produced by Mahdi, the publishing house of Hezbollah's Imam al-Mahdi Scouts youth movement.
During one patrol, troops found a postcard produced by the publishing house bearing the message: "What stays with a person throughout life is reading books at a young age; reading should become part of people's lives just like food, sleep, and other daily routines."
The reverse side of the high-quality postcard featured a photograph of Iran's former supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, who was killed in the opening strike of Operation Roaring Lion.
The Imam al-Mahdi Scouts are Hezbollah's official youth movement, established as the organization's educational and social arm to shape future generations of its members. The movement primarily recruits children and teenagers from Shi'ite strongholds in southern Lebanon, the Beqaa Valley, Beirut's Dahieh district, and the capital itself, with membership estimated in the tens of thousands.
Indoctrination from an early age
According to experts, the Imam al-Mahdi Scouts combine ideological indoctrination with militarism, cultivating hostility toward Israel and the US from an early age.
The Mahdi publishing house serves as one of the movement's primary propaganda platforms, producing newspapers, magazines, including Mahdi magazine, and pamphlets portraying Hezbollah operatives as heroes and Israel as an enemy to be fought through terrorism, including self-sacrifice unto death, or "shahada."
The publications also promote Iran's leadership, particularly Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, fostering admiration for him among young readers. According to experts, Hezbollah has spent years cultivating respect for senior figures in the Iranian regime, including Khamenei, among younger generations.
According to experts, Hezbollah's scout movement serves as a mechanism for ideological indoctrination and the early recruitment of future operatives. Members considered particularly committed may later join the organization's operational units, while others maintain an affinity for violent resistance before eventually joining Hezbollah.