Mohammad Nawar is only 10 years old, but he is ready to join the Jihad, or "Holy War" against the US.
Behind the bright-eyed, innocent face, is a chilly, steely determination for one so young. "I can't use a firearm but I can use a knife. I am ready for the Jihad if America attacks Afghanistan" Mohammad proudly told me yesterday.
Mohammad is one of 1,600 students of the biggest Islamic religious school, or "Madrassah", in Peshawar in North West Pakistan. Seminaries such as this one have spawned more than 90 per cent of the leadership of the Taliban.
The 6,000 or so Madrassah all over Pakistan are a powerful reminder of the state of the Islamic faith, with the Jihad at its centre.
I was led to the Jamia Namkmandi Madrassah through dusty, choking, narrow streets. My guide was one of the school's past pupils, Mohammad Tahir Dar.
This seminary is situated beside a mosque in a bustling market area. On the paths, bent-over men were busy recycling old car tyres for use as rubber shoe soles.
I was greeted by the bearded head teacher, Ziaurehman Alvi, who sat cross-legged on a carpeted floor and explained the concept of Jihad.
With its sprawling collection of rooms and brightly decorated mosque next door, this is an imposing place.
At lunchtime, the bearded students were performing their ablutions before going off to private prayer.
The students here range in age from five years to 18. They spend much of their day memorising large chunks of the Qur'an, and many may end up fighting with the Taliban against an invading American army.
They will join in the Jihad against the US called last week by the Taliban religious elders who met in Kabul in the event of a strike on Afghanistan.
This week, 1,000 of the older students will receive their graduation certificates and it is said some senior Taliban members from Afghanistan may travel here for the graduation ceremony.
Ziaureham Alvi is a fiery preacher and is convinced that people in the West have the wrong idea of what a Jihad is.
"First I want to say we don't agree with terrorism and have great sympathy for what happened the innocent people in America" he said. "But when a non-Muslim strikes on you and your people, then we must defend ourselves, our traditions, our country and Islam.
"In this situation we will have no choice but to join the Jihad if America strikes. This is what the Qur'an says." One of those prepared to fight if necessary is Mohammad Tahir. He is a Pashtoon, the people who make up most of Afghanistan and the North West Frontier of Pakistan.
"Every Pashtoon mother is telling her sons 'Get ready for the Jihad'. I am one of six sons and our mother has told us all to prepare.
"Yes, if the Americans attack, I will go across. As a Pashtoon warrior, I will fight."
Ziaurehman said the Islamic council, the Ulema, gave its verdict in Afghanistan last Thursday of Jihad against America. "We, the Islamic religious organisations in Pakistan, will rise up and side with the Taliban," he said.
"We will wage Jihad against the United States in accordance with the Qur'an." This religious teacher says Jihad and terrorism are different. "But if America attacks Afghanistan, there must be some reasons to attack. Who gives him the rights to attack a nation?
"Where is the United Nations? Where is the Human Rights Charter? America is killing a destroyed nation for its own political gain. America wants to take over the world."
He looks me in the eye and tells me that journalism is a "holy profession". "It is important that you give the right message to the public. Irish people have faced their own problems with terrorism too."
Until the 1970s there were fewer than 1,000 Madrassahs in Pakistan and they were dedicated primarily to the formal instruction of Islamic theology.
During the 10- year war with the Soviet Union, the seminaries were used as prep schools for anti-Soviet insurgents.
With arms from the United States and support from the Pakistan intelligence agency, the Madrassahs evolved into indoctrination and guerrilla training camps. By 1988, the year the Russians were defeated, there were almost 3,000 in the country.
The number of official Madrassahs has since doubled to 6,000, with hundreds more unregistered schools across the country. For boys from poor families, they offer the only hope of education.
Students between the ages of five and 20 years pay nominal fees of 100 rupees a month (£1). In return, they are given food and accommodation - normally little more than a carpet on the floor of a dormitory.
The teaching is purely Islamic. For up to six hours a day, students recite the Qur'an in Arabic. The Madrassahs are men-only. Women are not allowed inside the doors.
While Madrassahs do not offer any kind of military training, many graduates end up fighting against Indian soldiers in Islam's holy wars in Kashmir, or as volunteers in the Taliban's army.
Another reason for the growth of the Madrassahs is the fact that Pakistan's education system is in disarray.
According to Mohammad Tahir, Jihad is to fight for a very great cause. "People in the West should understand the spirit of Islam. We will protect our faith to the last."
Ten-year-old Mohammad Nawar lives in this Madrassah where his father is a teacher. He already knows parts of the Qur'an off by heart, and recites some passages for me.
He knows he is too young to fight in this war, even if he can use a knife.
But as Ziaurehman Alvi said, he is the future generation who will be ready to protect the Islamic faith in future years.
Meanwhile, if the US sends an invasion force to Afghanistan, it will find itself pitted against not only Taliban forces in Afghanistan, but the likes of Mohammad Tahir and some of the estimated two million students of Madrassahs in Pakistan who may join the cause.