A Study of the Possibility of Establishing an Islamic Government from the Perspective of Fada'iyan-e Islam

Authors

1 Ph.D. Student. Islamic Revolution Group. Islamic Education University. Qom. Iran

2 Assistant Professor of Political Science. Institute of Humanities and Cultural Studies. Tehran. Iran

10.22111/jhr.2025.53639.3842

Abstract

The Fedayan-e Islam society (Jamiat Fada'iyan Islam), led by the young cleric Nawab Safavi, engaged in nearly a decade-long struggle against the Pahlavi regime in the mid-twentieth century, with the aim of establishing an Islamic government, and exerted significant influence on the political developments of that period. This article, by examining the concept of Islamic government from the perspective of the Fedayan-e Islam, raises the fundamental question of whether the establishment of an Islamic government in Iran was feasible based on the ideas and views of this society. In order to provide a reasoned answer to this question, the article employs a descriptive–analytical approach and utilizes library-based research, drawing on sources produced by or related to the Fedayan-e Islam. By analyzing the data and organizing them into five components—(1) the possibility of formulating a theory of Islamic government, (2) the capacity to develop such a theory, (3) the sources for establishing an Islamic government, (4) the strategies for establishing an Islamic government, and (5) the practical mechanisms proposed by the society for this purpose—the study arrives at the following conclusion: the Fedayan-e Islam suffered from substantial theoretical and practical deficiencies across all dimensions, and the establishment of an Islamic government based on their ideas and viewpoints was not feasible.

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