Unverified Claim: Sistani Warns of Jihad Fatwa if U.S. Strikes Khamenei

February 22, 2026 09:30

In the past 24 hours, unverified reports have surged across social media claiming that Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani sent a stark warning—either directly to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei or through Iran’s ambassador in Iraq—stating that any U.S. military strike targeting Khamenei would lead Sistani to issue a fatwa calling for jihad against American forces.

"Al-Sistani to Khamenei!! : I will issue a fatwa for jihad against American forces if your life is threatened!!"

Based on a thorough search of official sources and recent reports, the claim that Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani issued or relayed a warning appears unverified and likely a rumor. Sistani's official website (sistani.org) contains no such statement or reference to any recent warnings about Khamenei, jihad, or U.S. actions as of February 22, 2026.

Major Iranian state media outlets, such as IRNA, Tasnim News, or Fars News Agency, do not report this specific warning from Sistani. Searches across these and other Iranian sources yield no confirmation.

The rumor is circulating widely on social media platforms like X, with multiple posts repeating the exact phrasing: "Grand Ayatollah Sistani to Iran's ambassador: 'An attack on Ayatollah Khamenei will trigger a fatwa of jihad against American soldiers'". However, these originate from unverified accounts and lack sourcing. Some Iraqi users on X have dismissed or mocked the claim as fabricated or exaggerated. 

Multiple users and fact-check-style accounts describe it as "fake news," "completely fake," "baseless," "mostly false," or "misrepresented," noting the absence of any confirmation from Sistani's office in Najaf, no mention on official channels, and origins in unverified sources like "Pamir Agency" or viral hype.  Others call it a psy-op, an exaggeration by pro-Iran accounts, as part of Iran's deterrence strategy. These skeptical voices appear in both English and mixed-language threads, often in replies to viral pro-claim posts.

"This is pure lies and deception — there was no fatwa and no jihad. Sistani's religious authority (marja'iyya) is fundamentally opposed to that of Qom, and therefore, he would never issue a fatwa against the Americans. No one is actually fighting on Iran's behalf - everything we hear is hollow rhetoric from its proxies, who were nowhere to be seen when Gaza fell, when Hezbollah collapsed, when Bashar al-Assad fled, when the Houthis were struck, or when Iran itself was hit during those 12 days."

Historical context shows Sistani has issued rare fatwas in the past (e.g., a 2014 call to arms against ISIS), but his recent statements emphasize de-escalation and avoiding regional chaos, such as warnings against escalation in Iran-Israel tensions in mid-2025. There is no evidence of him tying a jihad fatwa directly to Khamenei's safety in 2026.

In summary, without corroboration from Sistani's office or credible Iranian outlets, this seems to be misinformation amplified online amid heightened U.S.-Iran tensions. If new official statements emerge, the situation could change, but as of now, there's no reliable evidence to support them.

If Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani - widely regarded as the most followed marja' al-taqlid (source of emulation) in the Shia world, with greater religious scholarly prestige and a larger global following than Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei - were to issue such a statement, it would carry profound weight despite his well-known quietist orientation, which traditionally avoids direct political entanglement or endorsement of Iran's system of Wilayat al-Faqih (Guardianship of the Jurist).

A jihad fatwa from Sistani framing an attack on Khamenei as crossing a red line would signal an extraordinary, rare crossing of his usual restraint, potentially unifying millions of Shia followers across Iraq, Lebanon, the Gulf, and beyond under a religious imperative to resist - far beyond what Iranian hardliners or Khamenei himself could mobilize alone. This could dramatically escalate regional tensions, legitimize armed mobilization by Shia militias (including those not fully aligned with Tehran), and fracture the already tense divide between Iraqi nationalist Shiism and Iranian revolutionary ideology, turning a targeted strike into a perceived existential threat to Shia Islam as a whole. In short, Sistani's voice holds unmatched moral and doctrinal authority in traditional Shia scholarship; his endorsement of defensive jihad in this context would transform the conflict from a geopolitical standoff into a broadly sanctioned religious duty for a significant portion of the world's Shia population.