Sixteen-year-old at Islamist ‘warrior camp’ said it ‘felt like Nasrallah was with us again’

In a post on Instagram, the boy, who the JC is choosing not to name because of his age, said being at the camp – which offered “Olympic-level” wrestling training alongside religious education by a pro-Khamenei cleric – “felt like living a whole new life”.

He wrote: “I met new people and learned how to handle things most 16-year-olds wouldn’t normally face.

“I came to a men’s spiritual camp as the youngest, surrounded by brothers two to three times my age.”

He then appeared to refer to the death of Nasrallah, saying: “As Shia Muslims, we all lost someone dear last September.” 

Nasrallah was assassinated in an Israeli strike on Beirut in September. "Being in the presence of Mawlana Sayed Hussain Makke brought all those emotions back,” the boy wrote.

“His humility, kindness, and warmth moved me in a way I hadn’t felt before. For one of the first times in my life, I cried – not out of sadness, but from a sense of connection and remembrance.

“In that moment, it truly felt like the Sayed we lost was with us again,” the post went on. “Sayed” is a term of endearment used by Nasrallah’s supporters to refer to the late terror leader.

On his Instagram profile, the boy has used the digits “313” in his handle. According to a Shia doctrine followed by Hezbollah, this number represents the 313 soldiers who will play a crucial role in the reappearance and global domination of Imam Al-Mahdi. The doctrine claims that this apocalyptic war will destroy Israel and the global Jewish population.

Kasra Aarabi, an expert in the influence of the Iranian regime in the UK, told the JC the Instagram post was "deeply troubling”.

“It is deeply troubling that a minor who attended the ‘warrior’ camp claims the camp evoked feelings that the late Sayed Hassan Nasrallah — Hezbollah’s terror chief — was ‘with them again’, not least as the organiser of the camp has publicly documented associations to Hezbollah – a proscribed terrorist organisation in the UK,” he said.

Aarabi, who is the director of IRGC research at United Against Nuclear Iran (Uani), called on British authorities to “intervene and investigate without delay”.

“The growing threat from homegrown Shia Islamist radicalisation is not being taken seriously. Meanwhile, both the Iranian regime and Hezbollah are intensifying their efforts to cultivate such radicalisation abroad, including here in Britain.”

Following the camp, Makke posted a selfie on social media stating “mission accomplished” along with a loveheart and sword emoji. He captioned the post: “Spiritual Warrior – 1, Zio Karens – 0."

When the JC first reported on the camp, the local Jewish community expressed alarm, as did the CST.

Derbyshire Jewish Community said, “This is deeply alarming to us and poses a serious threat to the safety and wellbeing of our peaceful community,” while the CST called on the police to “take a close interest” in the camp.

A spokesperson for Derbyshire police said they were aware of the camp and “local officers are engaging with those involved to ensure the event, as with any large event in our county, operates safely within the law.

The force added: “The law is clear about the promotion of extremism or hate, with those groups supporting a terrorist ideology being proscribed as a result. We work closely with partners to ensure that Derbyshire remains a safe and cohesive place to live, work, and visit for all our communities. If something doesn’t feel right and you have concerns about terrorism, report it to police.”

In response to the JC’s original story about the “Spiritual Warrior Camp,” a legal group acting for Makke shared a response from their client which claimed: “The Jewish Chronicle is an asset of a hostile foreign regime. Neither I nor anyone else involved in the Spiritual Warrior Project will take lectures from an institution whose purpose is to radicalise British Jewry to facilitate genocide in the Levant.

“The focus of all British authorities should be on tracking, capturing and imprisoning homegrown Jewish extremists who have served, or continue to serve, in the genocidal Israeli military,” Makke’s statement said.