The image is a picture of the Shi‘a leader Yasir al-Habib, also known as Khasir al-Khabith in radical Sunni circles. His nickname (which will often rhyme or alliterate in Arabic) is “khasir al-khabith,” which means (“Lost/Loser the Abominable”). Al-Habib is a controversial Twelver Shi’i polemicist from Kuwait who lives in Britain. He is infamous for publicly insulting ‘Aisha and other companions of the Prophet who are condemned by Shi’a for not supporting ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib, the Prophet’s cousin and son-in-law, during the critical power struggles for succession following the Prophet’s demise in 632 C.E. Al-Habib has also slandered Twelver Shi’i scholars with whom he disagrees, including the late Lebanese grand ayatullah Muhammad Husayn Fadlallah. The image combines classic anti-Semitic elements, like the bullhorns and the blue Star of David on al-Habib’s headgear, and the caption “al-zindiq” (“unbeliever/atheist/one who professes belief in dualism or Manichaeism”). Jihadists frequently promote the theory that the Shi‘a are allies of the Jewish people (historically) and Israel (in the present).
