Exiled Muslim scholar warns far-left–Islamist alliance behind anti-Israel protests echoes Iran’s rise
A Muslim scholar who was forced to flee Egypt after criticizing Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks is warning America’s far left that its alliance with Islamic extremism could end the same way Iran did in 1979, with an Islamic regime seizing power after partnering with leftist groups.
Dalia Ziada, Middle East academic and coordinator of the Washington, D.C.-based Institute for Research on Global Antisemitism and Policy, later moved to the United States and said he now sees similar and troubling dynamics taking shape here.
His warning comes as a global network Anti-Israel activist groups This weekend prompts coordinated “Nakba 78” protests across the United States and the world; organizers are using the anniversary of Israel’s founding to stage demonstrations that critics say challenge the legitimacy of the Jewish state and, in some cases, call for its dissolution
“For five or seven years, we’ve been seeing a sort of ‘sinful marriage’ between the radical left and radical Islamism, groups that hate Western liberal democracies and want to destroy them,” he told Fox News Digital.
Left: Protesters gathered in Tehran in February 1979 during the Iranian Revolution, holding banners calling for an Islamic Republic. Right: Dalia Ziada, Middle East scholar and coordinator of the Washington, DC-based Institute for Research on Global Antisemitism and Policy, speaks during an interview.
(Getty Images)
Ziada said that there were also Islamist movements among them. Groups affiliated with the Muslim BrotherhoodFor years they have sought to use the Palestinian cause as a way to build alliances and mobilize support with other activist movements in the West; this is a phenomenon some analysts describe as a “red-green alliance”.
He also argued that Islamist movements are increasing. Targeted Jewish communities in the Westhe described it as a “pillar” supporting liberal democratic systems.
“They agree on only one thing; they need to destroy the West as we know it today and replace it with something else. For the radicals, they want to replace it with a Marxist system. For the Islamists, they want to replace it with an Islamist system, which they consider to be the ideal system.”
Global protest network
An investigation by Fox News Digital found that approximately 425 organizations, including communist groups, Muslim advocacy organizations, and anti-Israel activist coalitions, operate in a coordinated transnational protest network with a combined annual funding footprint of nearly $1 billion.
Groups organized an estimated 736 events in 39 countries this weekend.
Ziada said the alliance reflected what he described as a common hostility towards Western liberal democracies and was concentrated in the West. After October 7 Hamas is attacking.
He argued that the war in Gaza provided what he called a “moral umbrella” for the movement.
“They used this to give themselves moral legitimacy and accelerate the process of destroying the West,” he said.
Lessons from Iran
Ziada drew attention Iranian Revolution of 1979 cautionary example.
“We saw exactly this happen in Iran in the 1970s. Islamists used the left because the legitimacy of the left was stronger, because they did not come from a religious background,” he said. “They allied themselves with the communists there, convincing them that we were all going to change Iran and make it a better place. And how it ended in 1979, the Islamic Revolution happened. The Islamists took over the country, and the first group they sacrificed…the communists in Iran were the leftists.”
Ziada warned that similar dynamics may emerge in the United States if ideological alliances continue to deepen, and argued that movements built around common opposition may disintegrate when power changes.
He said that although the groups involved appeared compatible in the short term, their long-term goals were fundamentally incompatible; He said this pattern has happened many times in the Middle East.
She said such alliances are often temporary, warning that once power is secured, more extreme factions tend to dominate.
A split image shows Americans being held hostage during the 1979 takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, as well as today’s protests in Iran.
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He said the protests were expected to follow the familiar pattern of anti-Israel demonstrations, which he described as “very well organized around the world.”
“I don’t think demonizing Israel, blaming Israel for everything, in general, will be any different this time,” he said.
Ziada said protesters will likely frame Israel in terms such as “apartheid” and “genocide”; This language points to broader, coordinated action by groups operating with similar messages and goals.
Ziada said the term “Nakba,” meaning “catastrophe,” has been redefined over time and is largely absent from modern protests, arguing that the term was originally used in part to criticize Arab leaders for rejecting a proposed Palestinian state.
“I wouldn’t say it’s some kind of bureau, but they all agree on one thing, and that’s to destroy the United States or weaken the Western world.” he said.
A protester holds a photo of Iran’s former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, showing solidarity with the government against Israeli attacks and celebrating Eid al-Qadr, during a rally in Tehran on June 14, 2025.
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Ziada said he has seen the consequences of such alliances firsthand in the Middle East.
“I’ve seen my home country, Egypt, destroyed by these groups, these people, and I’ve seen the entire Middle East essentially fall under that. And I don’t want to see the United States of America, a country that gave me my education, gave me my career, gave me refuge when these radicals tried to kill me – I don’t want to see it destroyed by the same bad guys.”
Original article source: Exiled Muslim scholar warns far-left-Islamist alliance behind anti-Israel protests reflects Iran’s rise
