These non-Muslim American audiences of mine are surprised to learn that some of the known tyrants like Saddam Hussain and troublemakers like the PLO and Hamas are all Sunnis, just as they are surprised to learn that Tariq Aziz (Iraq’s Foreign Minister) was Christian and not a Muslim. So they say Shias are the ones who are the bad guys, the militant version of Islam, and cause all the trouble in the Middle East these days. They have no knowledge, other than what has been given to them by the media. Now when I give lectures on Islam to non-Muslims, one of the questions they always ask me is if I am Shia or Sunni.
Our families always respected Imam Hussain (peace be upon him) and his parents and participated in ceremonies marking the anniversary of his martyrdom (the 10th day of the month of Muharram which is called Ashura) by reciting the first chapter of the Quran (al-Fatihah) and other chapters and verses of the Quran and fasted on the ninth and tenth days of that month. Unfortunately, some so-called Muslim scholars on their payroll have also played a key role in keeping these differences alive.Īlthough I was born into a Sayyid Sunni family, I did not know of many differences while growing up as a child. The enemies of Islam to their benefit have always fanned these differences.
The war between Iran and Iraq was one of the bloodiest of the century, with an estimated one million Iranians and up to half-a-million Iraqis dying in the conflict.The centuries-old Shia-Sunni differences are the major obstacle to Muslim unity. Saddam wanted Iraq to replace Iran as the dominant state in the Persian Gulf, but he was also worried that the Iranian revolution could have a ripple effect among his country’s Shia majority. In 1980, Iraq - led by Sunni leader Saddam Hussein - invaded its neighbour Iran, which was led by the country’s new Shia ruler Ayatollah Khomeini. On the other hand, members of the Saudis' own Shia minority have complained of being treated as potential fifth columnists for Iran. This spreading influence has caused concern to the Sunni rulers of Arab countries with Shia minorities, such as Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. Since taking political power in 1979, Iran’s Shia clergy has been supporting the Shia Muslims of Iraq, Lebanon and Syria. This has been the case in Iraq, Lebanon, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Syria. Since the late 20th Century, complex political problems have been turned into sectarian issues by the parties involved, particularly in parts of the Middle East and Asia. But for Sunnis, Ashura is a fasting day to remember the day Nuh (Noah) left the ark and the day that Musa (Moses) was saved from the Egyptians by Allah.įor centuries, there were only occasional instances where religious intolerance on both sides led to conflict. This is considered to be the defining event in Shia history. For Shias, Ashura is a day of mourning which commemorates the martyrdom of the Imam al-Husayn. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims are mainly expressed through different religious practices.įor example, there are festivals which Sunnis and Shias do not celebrate in the same way, such as Ashura. Although Muslims in the UK have been part of a united community with a shared experience of immigration, the relationship between these groups has recently been in the spotlight in Britain too. Recent tensions in the Middle East and Asia have been interpreted in some sections of the media as religious conflict between Sunnis and Shias. While the main responsibility of Sunni Caliphs was to maintain law and order in the Muslim realm, as descendants of the Prophet, Shia Imams (spiritual leaders) also provided religious guidance and were considered infallible. This group was called Shia Ali, or ‘Party of Ali’, from which comes the word Shia.
Others insisted the Prophet had designated his cousin and son-in-law Ali as his legitimate heir. Muslims who wanted to select his successor, or Caliph, by following the traditional Arab custom (Sunna) formed into a group known as Sunnis. The historical split occurred 1400 years ago, following the death of Muhammad in Medina, in modern day Saudi Arabia. Of these some 5% are Shia, the rest are Sunni. Britain has an estimated Muslim population of about 2.8 million.
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