Systems of government and economies will collapse prior to the coming of Hazrat Mahdi (as)

All these (the signs of the End Times) WILL COME ABOUT AT A TIME WHEN COUNTRIES ARE UNDERGOING CHANGE, WHEN SERVANTS ARE WEAK AND WHEN ALL HOPE OF THE COMING OF HAZRAT MAHDI (AS) HAS BEEN LOST. At that time, one from my line, THE QAIM [HAZRAT MAHDI (AS)], WILL APPEAR WITH A PEOPLE, AND BY MEANS OF THAT PEOPLE ALLAH WILL MAKE TRUTH VICTORIOUS AND WILL EXTINGUISH SUPERSTITION WITH THE SWORDS OF THEIR KNOWLEDGE... O people, hear the glad tidings of the coming of the Mahdi.  Because Allah’s promise is true, and never fails. That commandment will not be taken back. He does all things in wisdom and knows all things. ALLAH'S CONQUEST IS NIGH. (Yanabi' al-Mawaddah, p. 440)

Our Prophet (saas) foretold various events and developments that would occur before the coming of Hazrat Mahdi (as) in the hadiths regarding the End Times. These hadiths are exceedingly important signs in terms of our understanding the End Times we are living in. In this hadith, Our Prophet (saas) describes a time when all hope of the coming of Hazrat Mahdi (as) has been lost and when some so-called religious scholars say things along the lines of, “Hazrat Mahdi (as) is a collective personality, do not expect Hazrat Mahdi (as) to appear, Hazrat Mahdi (as) will not be coming in this century, he will only come in hundreds of years’ time so there will be no global dominion of Islamic moral values in this century...” He spoke of the crises in the world during this time and of regime changes in various countries. Indeed, the regimes in many countries have changed in our time with the collapse of the communist regime. That was followed by a series of economic crises. We are currently going through a major economic crisis, that began in 2007 and that the world’s most respected economic institutions say will last for 7 years. There has also been a series of epidemics and cultural collapses. The fact that these portents have all taken place one after the other, like the beads on a necklace, shows that Hazrat Mahdi (as) has come and is at work. (Allah knows the truth.) As can also be seen from other hadiths, Hazrat Mahdi (as) will emerge from the Turkish people. Allah will use Hazrat Mahdi (as) and the heroic Turkish people to make His religion superior to all faiths, through knowledge, science and learning. Insha’Allah, a Turkish-Islamic Union will also be established in the time of Hazrat Mahdi (as).