Holy Smoke: Iran, Shia Islam & its tradition of martyrdom
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The Spectator
4.3 • 826 Ratings
🗓️ 24 March 2026
⏱️ 29 minutes
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Summary
When Ayatollah Khamenei was assassinated early in the Iran conflict, and during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, it was celebrated by the Trump administration – who saw this as a large step towards regime change in Iran. Yet, for Khamenei's supporters, his death secured him a place amongst other celebrated Iranian martyrs. Shia Islam has a long tradition of martyrdom, something under-appreciated in the global West, and which goes some way to explaining why the current regime has survived in the face of external threats. Yet, as Dr Eric Lob explains, there is still nuance between the faith of the theocratic regime and those adherents of Shia Islam in the country who are less political.
Eric Lob, associate professor in the Department of Politics and International Relations at Florida International University joins Damian Thompson to discuss.
Produced by Patrick Gibbons.
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Transcript
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| 0:34.9 | Welcome to Holy Smoke for the Spectator's Religion podcast. |
| 0:38.3 | I'm Damien Thompson. |
| 0:40.3 | Shia Islam, the religion of Iran, has a highly developed theology of martyrdom, |
| 0:48.3 | which, some might say, is relevant to the current war in the Middle East, |
| 0:52.3 | since at the time of recording the Islamic |
| 0:55.2 | Republic's revolutionary leaders are being taken out by Israel or the United States on an |
| 1:00.8 | almost daily basis. So far the regime has lost its supreme leader, Ayatollah |
| 1:06.3 | Harmony, and a whole tier of leadership, including the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard, |
| 1:11.8 | the chief of staff of Iran's armed forces, the defense minister, the security minister, |
| 1:17.9 | and the intelligence minister. Meanwhile, as we speak, we have yet to learn the fate of Iran's |
| 1:23.0 | new supreme leader, the late Ayatollah's son. I'm joined today by Professor Eric Lobb, |
| 1:30.4 | Associate Professor of Politics and International Relations at Florida International University, |
| 1:35.6 | who in the days after the Ayatollah's death were at a very interesting article in the |
| 1:39.7 | conversation about the contradictions in how Khomeini was perceived by some as a martyr and by others as an oppressor. |
| 1:49.0 | Eric, I wonder if we could begin by talking about the distinctive theology of martyrdom in Shia Islam |
| 1:57.0 | and how it contrasts with the way, for example, Sunni Muslims think about martyrdom. |
| 2:05.8 | First of all, thank you for having me. |
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