... seventh caliph Ismail and are know as seveners vs. the followers of the twelfth Imam or twelvers as Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The Ismaili Students’ Association operates on many campuses. Origins ... al Muntazar (Muhammad, the awaited one). These Shia, who are often referred to as “Twelvers,” claimed that the Twelfth Imam did not die but disappeared in 874. They believe that he ...

...'s president actually relishes a clash with the West in the conviction that it would rekindle the spirit of the Islamic revolution and - who knows - speed up the arrival of the Hidden Imam." (In Twelver Shi'ite doctrine, the Hidden Imam returns just before the appearance of the mahdi.) May 11, 2006 update: Jackson Diehl provides more information on this topic in "In Iran, Apocalypse vs. ...

...government but widely believed - is that Mr Ahmadinejad and his cabinet have signed a "contract" pledging themselves to work for the return of the Mahdi and sent it to Jamkaran. Iran's dominant "Twelver" sect believes this will be Mohammed ibn Hasan, regarded as the 12th Imam, or righteous descendant of the Prophet Mohammad. He is said to have gone into "occlusion" in the ninth century...

...Tehran is in the hands of a non-rational cadre that is committed to an apocalyptic vision that includes creating chaos in order to bring about, according to the Shia sect known as the Twelvers, the return of the hidden Twelfth Imam, the Mahdi, who vanished twelve centuries ago in Iraq. This unique, opaque vision propels the strategic decisions of the Tehran regime. Tehran sees its future ...