An Iranian newspaper affiliated with the nation's top religious authority claimed this week that the Harry Potter series of children's adventure books is a Zionist plot to distract young people.

The headline of the Kayhan newspaper article referred to Harry Potter, which was created by a British author with no known ties to Israel, as a “billion-dollar Zionist project.”

It claimed that the purpose of the Harry Potter series is to “disrupt young minds,” presumably in order to keep attention off Jewish efforts to rule the world, an ancient blood libel the Muslim world has become fond of.

Kayhan is widely seen as a mouthpiece for Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.