The ahadith have not mentioned all of the signs of the "end of time", the time of Imam Mahdi's Dhuhur, instead they have only made mention of some of them which we will explain:

1- The Appearance of the Sofyani: One of the signs of Imam Mahdi's Dhuhur is the appearance of the one named Sofyani.[1] The ahadith mention that the Sofyani is among the descendants of Utbah Ibn Abi Sofyan and that he is an evil person.[2] The Sofyani which is one of the enemies of Imam Mahdi will rise against him but will be swallowed by the earth by Allah’s (swt) decree along with his followers in a place named "Beyda" (which today is located in Yemen or between Mecca and Medinah).[3]

2- Yamaani: There are several ahadith that mention the appearance of the Yamaani before the Dhuhur of the twelfth Imam. In this regard Imam Sadiq says: "There are five signs for our Dhuhur (the Dhuhur of the twelfth Imam), the appearance of Sofyani and Yamaani, the loud cry in the sky, the murder of 'Nafse Zakeyyah' and the earth swallowing [a group of people] in the land of 'Beyda'."[4] In another hadith by Imam Baqir, the imam says: "The appearance of Sofyani, Yamaani and Khorasani will take place in one year, one month and one day (at the same time), they will take place as a series of events that are all connected by one string… among these individuals the Yamani is the closest to guidance, for he calls the people to join the Imam.  When he rises the trading of weapons will be prohibited for every Muslim. When he rises join him immediately, for his flag is the flag of guidance and prosperity and no Muslim should oppose it. Any one who does so will go to hell, because the Yamaani calls to the right path.”[5]

Therefore according to the ahadith narrated from the prophet's household the Yamani symbolizes a movement that opposes the deviations that will take place during the absence of Imam Mahdi.[6]

3- Khorasani: Another sign of the Imam's Dhuhur is the rising of black flags from the land of Khorasan (located in Iran today).

In a hadith by Imam Ali he says: "You should expect the Dhuhur (of the Twelfth Imam) when three things happen." The Imam was asked: "What are they?" He responded: "… and the rising of black flags from Khorasan."[7]

Imam Baqir (as) says: "The black flags will rise from Khorasan and move until they reach the city of Kufah, there they will wait, when the Imam appears, he will send for them to get their bey’ah (allegiance)."[8]

This hadith indicates that the rising of the black flags will take place close to the Imam's appearance.

It has also been narrated that the Khorasani is one Imam Hossein's descendants.[9]

4- Shu’ayb Ibn Saleh: The ahadith say that Shu’eyb Ibn Saleh will rise from the city of "Samarqand".[10]  He is a righteous individual who along with his army, according to the ahadith, are eager to do Jihad in the way of Allah.[11]

When the Imam appears the Khorasani and his troops will move ahead of the Imam and his army to protect and shield them, and will be of the first to sacrifice their lives for him.[12]

As for the name Zarghawi, it hasn’t been mentioned in the ahadith, not as a sign of the Dhuhur and not for anything else.

One important point that must be remembered is that because these individuals have not been introduced in detail in our ahadith, the attributes ascribed to them can cover many people because of their broadness, and identifying exactly who the ahadith are speaking of is very taxing, therefore just because for instance a good person in Yemen rises against tyranny doesn’t necessarily mean that it is he whom the hadiths are referring to, the same goes with the Sofyani, Khorasani, Shu’eyb ibn Saleh, etc.

What is misleading for many is when certain individuals apply these hadiths to whom they think they are speaking of, and after a while it turns out that it was a wrong application of the hadiths; this undermines the faith of others and is also an embarrassment for those who have made such claims.

For more information you can refer to Question 3534 (website: 3827), The signs of the emergence of Imam Mahdi (aj) and the book, Ba Gamhaye Sabze Entezar” (Farsi).