In Muslim world there are two major sects. The Sunnis and Shi’as. Some refer to Muslim mystics, the Sufis, as a sect of Islam. They are, however, considered as Sunnis. A study in 2010 and 2011 showed that there are 1.62 billion Muslims around the world, and it is estimated that the Sunni population is between 75% and 90%.

The Sunnis

The word “sunni” comes from the Arabic word sunnah which means way and is referred to, the way of the prophet or the tradition (actions and sayings) of the Prophet Muhammad (s). The Sunni Islam is sometimes referred to as Orthodox Islam.

Among the Sunni sect there are four major schools of thought or sub-sects each follow a particular Islamic law. They are:

• Hanafism: The founder is the Persian scholar Imam Abu Hanifah al-Nu’manibnThabit (AD: 699-767). His school of thought is practiced widely in Southeast Asia, Central Asia, the Caucasus, the Balkans and Turkey. The majority of Sunni Muslims practice the Hanfi jurisprudence.

Beliefs:

1. Prayer (al-Salat) in another language is permitted.
2. Asking for money for teaching Qur’an and saying Athan is permitted.
3. Friday prayer in more than one mosque in one city/town is correct.
4. Making wudu with wine is permitted.
5. Junub passing through a mosque is not permitted.
6. Polytheists entering mosques is permitted.
7. Giving Zakat al-Fitrah and Kaffareh to Jews and Christians is permitted.
8. Neither does faith increase nor decrease.
9. Compulsory divorce is permitted.
10. Using tricks to attaingMubah is permitted.
11. One time feeding by breast even one drop is Haraam.
12. Female is permitted to be judge.

• Shafi’ism: The founder is Abu Abdullah Muhammad IbnIdris al-Shafi’i known as Imam Al-Shafi’i (AD: 767-820). Imam al-Shafi’i is also known as the “First Among Equals” for his exhaustive knowledge and systematic methodology to religious science. Adherents of this sect are mainly from the Middle East.

Beliefs:

1. Discarding scholastic theology.
2. Qur’an is God’s words and old, but not created.
3. Narrations are sufficient reason after Qur’an.
4. Imamah belongs to Quraysh only.
5. Belief in Qiyas and refusing Ijtihad.
6. Semen is not najis/ tahir.
7. Polytheists are allowed to enter mosques save Masjid al-Harram.
8. Saying Asr prayer before Zuhr prayer in al-Jam’ bayn al-Salatayn.
9. Mayyit prayer over martyr’s body is not allowed.
10. It is obligatory for kid to pay Zakat.
11. Murtad (blasphemous)’s I’tikaf is not ivalid.
12. Man is allowed to marry his daughter out of adultery.
13. Ruler is allowed to divorce one’s wife.
14. Slaughtered animal purposely bismillahalrahmanalrahim not mentioned over it when slaughtering is allowed to be eaten.
15. Singing is not Haraam, its doer not Faaseq and his testimony is not refused.

• Malikism: The founder is Malik Bin Anas (AD: 711-795). Its adherents are mostly from North Africa, United Arab Emirates, and parts of Saudi Arabia.

Beliefs:

1. Qur’an is God’s words not created.
2. Generally committed major sins is believer.
3. The companions’ sayings and fataawa are of the Prophet’s conduct.
4. Dog is taaher.
5. One is allowed to pray Qasr on committing sin trip.
6. Friday prayer is only allowed at mosque.
7. Who forgetfully eats or drinks in Ramadan is not fasting and it is obligatory to do its Qadaa’.
8. Marrying the faithless is invalid.
9. The longest period of pregnancy is five years.

• Hanbalism: The founder is Imam Ahmad IbnHanbal (AD: 780–855). The Hanbali jurisprudence is considered very strict and conservative. The Hanbalischool of jurisprudence is practiced mainly in Saudi Arabia, Qatar as well as in parts of Syria and Iraq.

Beliefs:

1. One commits a major sin he is authorized to God.
2. Belief in God’s attributes as is mentioned in the Qur’an and the Prophet’s traditions.
3. Qur’an is not created.
4. Almighty God can be viewed in the hereafter.
5. Revolting against the ruler even he is tyrant and dissolute.
6. All companions are just.
7. Charity and evil are of God’s destiny.
8. Caliphate belongs to Quraysh.
9. Jihad with the ruler either he is pious or dissolute is correct.
10. He who has quitted his prayer is Kaafer, not allowed to pray on his dead body and bury him in the Muslim cemetery.

The Shi’a

The word “Shi’a” in Arabic literally means a sect or a faction. The followers of the Shi’a sect belong to the faction or followers of Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law, Ali who, according to the Shi’a sect should have been the direct successor of Muhammad and is considered divinely appointed and the first Imam. There are three main schools of thought or sub-sects within the Shi’a sect.

1) The Ithnaashariyya: the followers of this sect believe in the 12 divinely ordained leaders, knows as the Twelve Imams. Nearly 85% of the total Shi’a populationbelongs to this sect. They are scattered in Iran, Iraq, Bahrain, Lebanon, and Syria. A large minority group is found in India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.

2) The Isma’ilis or as commonly known as the SevenImamis: Unlike the Twelvers, they believe in different number of Imams. They also differ in the role of the Imam. The Isma’ili minorities are found in Syria, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Jordan, Lebanon and South Africa.

3) The Zaydi branch: This school of thought was named after its founder ZaydIbn Ali. They are mainly prevalent in Yemen. They have a unique approach within the Shi’a Islamic thought that is similar to the Sunnis. Adherents to this branch are called the Fivers.

The difference between Sunni and Shia sects

The difference between the Sunnis and Shi’a is more of a political nature than creed. There are no major differences between the two sects. Both, Sunnis and Shi’as, believe in the one God or Tawhid, in the angels, scriptures, prophets and messengers, the hereafter, and the divine decree, destiny. They share the same scripture, called the Qur’an. Although there may be a difference in the way Sunnis and Shi’as worship, nevertheless, both pray five times a day, fast the month of Ramadan, pay the zakah and go to Mecca for pilgrimage. During daily prayers, both Sunnis and Shi’as direct their faces toward Mecca.

After the demise of Muhammad (s), Muslims disputed over the prophet’s successor. The Prophet’s successors, Abu Bakr, Omar, Uthman and Ali (‘a)respectively after him were accepted by Muslims as the rightful successors of the prophet. On the other hand, the Muslims who thought Ali Bin AbiTalib, the prophet’s cousin, is the legitimate successor of the prophet became to be known as Shi’a. The Shi’a believes that the prophet’s successor has to be from the family of the prophet Muhammad. Whereas Sunnis believe that the successor of the prophet must be from the tribe of Quraish, the prophet’s tribe. This political discord continued for centuries and the divide between the two sects remains to this day unresolved. Another major difference between Sunni and Shi’a is that Sunnis believe that no person after Muhammad is infallible while the Shi’a believes in the infallibility of the twelve Imams (leaders) who are descendants from the family of the Prophet Muhammad.

Bottom of Form

Compiled, Summarized, and Translated by:

SayyidBaqirHusayni

Traditions from Sahih Bukhari

Narrated Salama:

`Ali happened to stay behind the Prophet (ﷺ) and (did not join him) during the battle of Khaibar for he was having eye trouble. Then he said, "How could I remain behind Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)?" So `Ali set out following the Prophet (ﷺ) , When it was the eve of the day in the morning of which Allah helped (the Muslims) to conquer it, Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "I will give the flag (to a man), or tomorrow a man whom Allah and His Apostle love will take the flag," or said, "A man who loves Allah and His Apostle; and Allah will grant victory under his leadership." Suddenly came `Ali whom we did not expect. The people said, "This is `Ali." Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) gave him the flag and Allah granted victory under his leadership.

حَدَّثَنَا قُتَيْبَةُ، حَدَّثَنَا حَاتِمٌ، عَنْ يَزِيدَ بْنِ أَبِي عُبَيْدٍ، عَنْ سَلَمَةَ، قَالَ كَانَ عَلِيٌّ قَدْ تَخَلَّفَ عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم فِي خَيْبَرَ وَكَانَ بِهِ رَمَدٌ فَقَالَ أَنَا أَتَخَلَّفُ عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَخَرَجَ عَلِيٌّ فَلَحِقَ بِالنَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم، فَلَمَّا كَانَ مَسَاءُ اللَّيْلَةِ الَّتِي فَتَحَهَا اللَّهُ فِي صَبَاحِهَا، قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏ "‏ لأُعْطِيَنَّ الرَّايَةَ ـ أَوْ لَيَأْخُذَنَّ الرَّايَةَ ـ غَدًا رَجُلاً يُحِبُّهُ اللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُ ـ أَوْ قَالَ يُحِبُّ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ ـ يَفْتَحُ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ ‏"‏‏.‏ فَإِذَا نَحْنُ بِعَلِيٍّ وَمَا نَرْجُوهُ، فَقَالُوا هَذَا عَلِيٌّ‏.‏ فَأَعْطَاهُ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَفَتَحَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ‏.

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Narrated Sad:

that the Prophet (ﷺ) said to 'Ali, "Will you not be pleased from this that you are to me like Aaron was to Moses?"

حَدَّثَنِي مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ بَشَّارٍ، حَدَّثَنَا غُنْدَرٌ، حَدَّثَنَا شُعْبَةُ، عَنْ سَعْدٍ، قَالَ سَمِعْتُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ بْنَ سَعْدٍ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ، قَالَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم لِعَلِيٍّ ‏ "‏ أَمَا تَرْضَى أَنْ تَكُونَ مِنِّي بِمَنْزِلَةِ هَارُونَ مِنْ مُوسَى ‏"‏‏.‏

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Narrated IbnAbiNu'm:

A person asked `Abdullah bin `Umar whether a Muslim could kill flies. I heard him saying (in reply). "The people of Iraq are asking about the killing of flies while they themselves murdered the son of the daughter of Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) . The Prophet (ﷺ) said, They (i.e. Hasan and Husain) are my two sweet basils in this world."

حدَّثَنِي مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ بَشَّارٍ، حَدَّثَنَا غُنْدَرٌ، حَدَّثَنَا شُعْبَةُ، عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ أَبِي يَعْقُوبَ، سَمِعْتُ ابْنَ أَبِي نُعْمٍ، سَمِعْتُ عَبْدَ اللَّهِ بْنعُمَرَ، وَسَأَلَهُ، عَنِ الْمُحْرِمِ،، قَالَ شُعْبَةُ أَحْسِبُهُ يَقْتُلُ الذُّبَابَ فَقَالَ أَهْلُ الْعِرَاقِ يَسْأَلُونَ عَنِ الذُّبَابِ وَقَدْ قَتَلُوا ابْنَ ابْنَةِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم، وَقَالَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏"‏ هُمَا رَيْحَانَتَاىَ مِنَ الدُّنْيَا".‏

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باب مَنَاقِبُ فَاطِمَةَ عَلَيْهَا السَّلاَمُ

وَقَالَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ: «فَاطِمَةُ سَيِّدَةُ نِسَاءِ أَهْلِ الْجَنَّةِ».

Narrated Al-Miswar bin Makhrama:

Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "Fatima is a part of me, and whoever makes her angry, makes me angry."

حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو الْوَلِيدِ، حَدَّثَنَا ابْنُ عُيَيْنَةَ، عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ دِينَارٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ أَبِي مُلَيْكَةَ، عَنِ الْمِسْوَرِ بْنِ مَخْرَمَةَ ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ ‏ "‏ فَاطِمَةُ بَضْعَةٌ مِنِّي، فَمَنْ أَغْضَبَهَا أَغْضَبَنِي ‏"‏‏.‏

Traditions from the Sahih Muslim

Chapter: The Virtues Of The Household Of The Prophet (SAW)

There exists ONLY ONE tradition in this section, and this tradition has no reference to the wives of the Prophet (PBUH&HF). The tradition is known as "The Tradition of Cloak/Mantle" (Hadith al-Kisaa), and is as follows:

'A'isha reported that Allah's Apostle (ﷺ) went out one norning wearing a striped cloak of the black camel's hair that there came Hasan b. 'Ali. He wrapped hitn under it, then came Husain and he wrapped him under it along with the other one (Hasan). Then came Fatima and he took her under it, then came 'Ali and he also took him under it and then said:

Allah only desires to take away any uncleanliness from you, O people of the household, and purify you (thorough purifying)

باب فَضَائِلِ أَهْلِ بَيْتِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏‏

حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو بَكْرِ بْنُ أَبِي شَيْبَةَ، وَمُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ نُمَيْرٍ، - وَاللَّفْظُ لأَبِي بَكْرٍ - قَالاَ حَدَّثَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ بِشْرٍ، عَنْ زَكَرِيَّاءَ، عَنْ مُصْعَبِ بْنِ شَيْبَةَ، عَنْ صَفِيَّةَ بِنْتِ شَيْبَةَ، قَالَتْ قَالَتْ عَائِشَةُ خَرَجَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم غَدَاةً وَعَلَيْهِ مِرْطٌ مُرَحَّلٌ مِنْ شَعْرٍ أَسْوَدَ فَجَاءَ الْحَسَنُ بْنُ عَلِيٍّ فَأَدْخَلَهُ ثُمَّ جَاءَ الْحُسَيْنُ فَدَخَلَ مَعَهُ ثُمَّ جَاءَتْ فَاطِمَةُ فَأَدْخَلَهَا ثُمَّ جَاءَ عَلِيٌّ فَأَدْخَلَهُ ثُمَّ قَالَ ‏} إِنَّمَا يُرِيدُ اللَّهُ لِيُذْهِبَ عَنْكُمُ الرِّجْسَ أَهْلَ الْبَيْتِ وَيُطَهِّرَكُمْ تَطْهِيرًا‏{‏

One can see that the author of Sahih Muslim confirms that:

(1) Imam Ali, Fatimah, al-Hasan, and al-Husain are the Ahlul-Bayt,
(2) The purification sentence in Quran (the last sentence of Verse 33:33) was revealed for the virtue of the above-mentioned individuals, and NOT for the wives of the Prophet (PBUH&HF).

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Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying to Hasan:

O Allah, behold, I love him. Thou too love him and love one who loves him.

حَدَّثَنِي أَحْمَدُ بْنُ حَنْبَلٍ، حَدَّثَنَا سُفْيَانُ بْنُ عُيَيْنَةَ، حَدَّثَنِي عُبَيْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ أَبِي يَزِيدَ، عَنْ نَافِعِ بْنِ جُبَيْرٍ، عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم أَنَّهُ قَالَ لِحَسَنٍ ‏ "‏ اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أُحِبُّهُ فَأَحِبَّهُ وَأَحْبِبْ مَنْ يُحِبُّهُ ‏"‏ ‏.‏

Every action of assassination and terrorism are liable to be criticized strongly. Development Goals of UN reports as a major stumbling block to the all-round development of humanity. But rather terroristactivities do not take birth in some day. Such these activities are the result of a strong ideology which considersterror activities as legal and just on one hand and promotes them through various Media particularity viacreed onthe other hand. Wahabismis one of such an important ideology in this text. Nowadays many strategic and geopoliticalanalysts are busy to know how the ideology of Wahabism is helping in promoting the global terrorism. The ideology ofWahabism is directly promoted by Saudi Arabia’s government as the said country is a place of birth of this ideology as wellas the founder of this ideology ‘Muhammad binAbdal-Wahhab’. This ideology has promoted a feeling of intolerance for otherreligions which has led to large scale violence and deaths of countless innocent people of countries of Middle East Asiaparticularly Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, Chechnya region of Russia, Afghanistan, India, Somalia, Nigeria, Libya etc.In thisarticle an attempt is made to know the role of Wahabism in the rise of international horror and terrorism. What werethe causes behind the rise of this ideology? How this ideology is spreading in different parts of the globe? What would be thegeopolitical effects of spread of this strategy? Recently, what type of measures are required to be taken as well as nowtaken by different countries to face Wahhabi and its associated Jihadist Ideologies?

Keywords: Terrorism, Humanity, Ideology, Media, Violence and Jihadist.

Preface

The ideology of Wahabism, which was once first introduced in early years of 8th century, was given a new opportunity of life and revived by ShaykhMuhammad bnAbd al-Wahab. This ideology was later spread by Saudi dynasty in Saudi Arabia. Such ideology of Wahabism rejects otherreligious sects,religions and claims that the opponents of their belief must either accept Wahabidoctrine or pay tribute. Theloyals of Wahabismtake into consideration and accuse their opponents of polytheism and blasphemy and consider their property,honor and lives legitimate for themselves. Having such rigid and closed thoughts, Wahabis destroyed the holy buildings of‘Maqbarat al-Baqi’ and artifacts of the family and associates of the ‘Prophet’ following the dominance of Saudi’s over Meccaand Medina in 1344 A.H. The barbaric and fanatical behavior of Taliban in the fields of politics, governance and diplomacy inAfghanistan and destruction of many important manuscripts in ‘Ahmad Baba Institute’ and many other ancient and uniquebuildings by Islamist rebels of ‘Ansaral-Dine’ group in Mali, Africa, is the true example of their attitudes. The formation andbeliefs of Wahabismare always rejected by ulama of various Islamic sects. Even ‘Ulemas’ have also criticizedthem regarding their approach towards religious issues. It is also said that Wahabis have paved the way for enemies ofIslam. They have fought many destructive wars in alliance with colonial states of Britain and Americaand thus they turned to source of arrogance in the Muslim world. The ideology of Wahabism has its birth in Saudi Arabia,and America and Saudi Arabia have had a long-standing political, economic and military alliance. America is always serious aboutprotection of the ruling family of the kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Despite the fact that the Hejaz is governed by anIslamic fundamentalist religious ideology, Wahabism and repressive authoritarian kingdom, U.S. has always given primeWahhabism and Global Terrorismimportance to it while considering U.S.A’s interests in the Middle East and Asia. Many scholars have accused this ideology of“deviat[ing] from [Islam’s] core notions of tolerance, and moderation”1.

This has been primarily made possible by ‘Petrodollars’ and the purchasing power that the SaudiArabia has its disposal. This has given the Saudi monarchy the ability to form a strong friendship with U.S. and other Westernallies.But a sharp turn has come in Saudi-U.S. and other Western European allies relationship after September 11, 2001 terrorattacks on World Trade Centre in U.S.A. and later on terror attacks in London. These events raised serious questions aboutthe role of Saudi government and their Wahhabi ideology in terrorism associated with earlier Al-Qa’idah and later on itssplinter groups like Islamic State in Iraq, Ansaral-Dine in Mali, Al Shabab in Somalia & Kenya, and also many terrorgroups working against India in Jammu & Kashmir. The terror attacks on U.S.A. and U.K. has shifted the attention of globalmilitary and strategic planners over Saudi Arabia because 15 out of 19 hijackers that attacked the World Trade Centre inU.S.A. including Usama bin Laden and other global ‘Jihadists’, also participated and fought in Bosnia, Chechnya, Afghanistanand Iraq. A majority of these terrorists were Saudi nationals.The Wahabism has generated great interest and debate among academic and defense policy experts. Some people said that it iscentral to the growth of Islamist violence and Jihad while others insist it as a rigid ideology with non-liberal beliefs but notdirectly linked to violence and Jihadism. Another group of scholars which adopts middle way says Wahabism is an assisting factor but not the sole factor in violent Islamist extremism.Therefore, in this present paper an attempt is made to determine the role of Wahabism and Saudi government in therise of international terrorism. There is also an attempt made to know whether Wahhabism is a contributing factor in the spread ofviolent radicalization in the Muslim world and what are the causal mechanisms linking Wahabism to violence?

Aims of the Research

1. Understanding the meaning of Wahabism and its historical background and status quo.
2. The Role of Wahabism in the spread of violence and terrorism in Muslim as well as other parts of the world.
3. The Role of Superpowers in the spread of Wahhabi ideology.
4. Suggesting some necessary measures to counter and neutralize the ill-effects of such ideologies on our present daysociety.

Methodology

This paper has used information obtained from various sources including articles from newspapers, magazines, internetand numerous books and research papers.

The Background of Research

The land of Hijaz is a place of birth of the ideology of Wahabism. Consequently, it is our main background of study but effects of thisideology on human society will be studied at global level.

The Background onWahabism

“Wahhabism” generally refers to a movement that seek to purify the Islamic religion of any innovations orpractices that deviate from the seventh-century teaching of the prophet Muhammad and his companions.”2 In the West, theterm has been used mainly to denote the form of Islam practiced in Saudi Arabia and which has spread recently in variouspart of the world. In most of the Muslim nations, however, believers who adhere to this creed, prefer to call themselves as‘Unitarians’ (in Arabic it is ’Muwahiddun’) or” Salafiyyun” (singular - Salafi, noun - Salafiyya). The later term Salafiyyah hasbeen derived from word ‘Salaf’ which means to ‘follow’, a reference to the followers and companions of theProphet. Some Muslim scholars believe that western world has used the term ‘Wahabism’ unfairly which carries negativeand derogatory connotations. The main difference between these two terms is that the Wahabism is in association with a

‘Conservative Islamic Creed’ which is centered in and emanating from Saudi Arabia whereas Salafiyyah is a more generalIslamic movement that has developed independently in various sites in the Muslim world.

History of Wahabism: - It is a puritical form of Sunni Islam and is practiced in Saudi Arabia and Qatar. The word ‘Wahabi’ isderived from the name of a Muslim scholar, ‘Muhammad bin Abdal-Wahab’ (1703-1791AD). He was frustrated by the moraldecline of his society. As a result of which he denounced many popular beliefs and practices as idolatrous. He encouragedpeople to return to the pure and orthodox practices of the fundamentals of Islam as embodied in the holy Qur’an and in thelife of Prophet Muhammad. “In 18th century, ‘Muhammad bin Saud’, the founder of modern – day Saudi dynasty, partneredwith Abdel-Wahhab to begin the process of unifying disparate tribes in Arabian Peninsula. Since the foundation of modernSaudi Arabia in 1932 Ad, there has been a close relationship between Saudi ruling family and the Wahhabi religious establishments.”3Wahhabism in Saudi Arabia Today: - “With the establishment of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Wahhabism gained new groundand was used as official basis for determining laws and conducts in Saudi society. Wahhabism is the basis for such practicesas segregation of sexes, the prohibition of the sale and consumption of alcohol, ban on women driving and a host of otherrestrictions. Wahabism has also shaped the Saudi educational structure, and the Saudi school books generally denounceteachings that do not conform to Wahabist beliefs.”4

Wahhabism opposes most popular religious practices such as veneration of saints, celebration of the birthday of ProphetMuhammad and practices associated with Sufism. According to the US state Department’s 2005 ‘International ReligiousFreedom Report’ on Saudi Arabia, “Inspite of many efforts made by senior Saudi government officials to promote religioustolerance towards other religions and steps to remove some intolerant material from textbooks, not much success has beenachieved. Still members of Shiite Muslim minority and other non-Islamic religious minorities suffer political and economicdiscrimination.Non-Muslim groups are not allowed of freedom of worship whether public or private.”

The Factors that Encourage Wahabism

Though there are a number of factors responsible for encouragement of Wahhabism but here we will discuss only importantones. These are as follows:

1. Traditional Causes: - Abd al-Wahab was very much angry to see the moral decline of Muslim society of his country.
2. Colonialism: - The Turks of Ottoman Empire had under them a vast area of western Asia, Northern Africa and some partsof Europe under their control. But after their decisive defeat in Vienna started the process of slow but steady decline ofthis empire. Eying on many territories of this empire, the British started to undermine the unity of Ottoman Empire. TheBritish, through their Masonic agent sought to destroy the Ottoman Empire from within, by pitting against their ownbrothers in Islam, the Arabs of Peninsula.
3. The Atrocities Against Muslims in Different Parts of the World:-Atrocities against Muslims community in different parts of theworld such as Palestinian Arabs in Gaza & West Bank, Chechen Muslims in Russia, etc. have further given strength to this Wahabi ideology because its principles are very much liked by the Jihadistsfighting in these areas. Wahabists are generously providing money for these terror groups so that these groups canpurchase much needed weapons and continue their struggle against their respective governmentsof different countries.
4. Radicalization of Western World: - The preachers of Wahhabism and Islamic Jihad has not confined the achievement oftheir aims within the Muslim world; they want to expand it at world level. So, their targets are western Europeancountries and US. But due to their inability to fight with these mighty powers militarily, they have divided their workbetween militants and more moderate sounding clerics appointed as Imams. Militants work for the destruction of U.S.and its allied western European powers whereas moderate clerics try to brainwash the Muslims of these countries. Therecent involvement of many British Muslim nationals and U.S. nationals in terror activities of Islamic state in Iraq and Syriaand their involvement in many suicide attacks in Middle East shows that many of people in western world are influencedby Wahhabi ideology. The promotion of this ideology is equally funded either directly or indirectly by the Saudis and someother Gulf countries.
5. Instruments of Propaganda: - Following are the main sources of propaganda used generally by the proponents ofWahhabism.

(i) Satellite Channels: - Satellite channels are often used by the proponents of Wahhabism. For example ‘Vesal’, ‘Noor’,

and ‘Safa” are the satellite channels used by radical Wahhabis in Southern Iran to promote ethnic divide among

Shias and Sunnis. It is important to mention that programs of these channels are completely under the control of

ruling Saudi family. (Jafari, 2007.P.98).

(ii) Internet Websites and Social Network Sites: - Many internet websites and social networking sites are also used topromote Wahhabi ideology. Quoting ‘Ayatollah’, JafariSobhani, HusseiniQazvini writes: “based on most recent

information, 40000 Wahhabi websites are working against Shias.” (Qazvini, 2007, P.43).

(iii) Publishing Books: - Wahhabis make their efforts to publish and disseminate books, studies and researches

promoting their ideology and sect.

(iv) Promoting Ethnicity: - They also promote ethnic issues to attract people particularly the youth in their fold.

(v) Exploiting Poor and Hungry People: - We all know that a hungry man is an angry man. These evil minded people

attract the poor and hungry people by giving them lure of money and power. Once they trapped they are brain

washed and included in the cadre of terrorists.

The Role of Superpowers  and Semi-powers in promotion of Wahabism

Among superpowers of the world, mainly Great Britain and U.S.A, for their personal interest against their rivals have usedto promote and support the Wahhabi ideology.In the second half of 19th century, British imperialism discovered the house of ‘Al Saud’ as a potentially useful ally in itsattempt to gain influence in the Middle East and undermine the Ottoman Empire. Riyadh was invaded by Ottoman Sultan in1818AD.The Al Saud returned to power in 1823AD. Later on British helped the Al Saud to establish a base in its protectorate ofKuwait, in order to reconquer, at that time ruled by the pro – Ottoman ‘Al Rashid’ dynasty. Then, the UK became the first country to recognize new Saudi Arabia as an independent state, establishing itscurrent borders in 1932 AD. In 1927AD, a treaty was also signed between The Crown Prince and Saudi Monarchy known as‘Treaty of Friendship and Good understanding. ‘The chief aim of Britain was to secure the one link of chain passing from SuezCanal, Egypt to India.

The U.S. interests in Saudi Arabia were earlier confined to use the vast oil reserves of this country. But the period of coldwar saw a massive support to this ideologyA German database showing the channeling of the money and weapons, provided by ISI officer Mohammad Yusuf in hisbook: Afghanistan – The Bear Trap: The Defeat of a Superpowerand its promoters by U.S.A. This was period of struggle for world domination between U.S.A. and former Soviet Union Here themain aim of U.S.A. to support the so called ‘Mujahideen’ in Afghanistan was to give Russia (then U.S.S.R) its Vietnam. Theinvolvement in the matters of Afghanistan and sending its troops against well trained Talibani and Mujaheed soldiers gave asevere blow to the U.S.S.R. which later on became another cause of its disintegration.Another example of U.S. support to the Wahhabis can be seen in ‘Syria’ where the secular, multi-ethnic and multi-faithsociety is being targeted by these very same forces, as well as reactionary regimes such as GCC and Turkey as well. Here, thepurpose of U.S. involvement is, first to isolate Iran and then once again target Russia.Russia while on the other hand is helping Syria and its ruler Bashr-al Asad to avoid any loss of her own ground in the MiddleEast. It is so because if the Asad’s regime fall in Syria and Iran become isolated then surly, Wahhabis will turn their attentionmore deeply towards too soft and vulnerable Muslim populated areas of Russia such as Chechnya.

The Role of Saudi Arabia in Promotion of Wahabism

The land of Saudi Arabia is a chief proponent of this ideology as Wahabism has taken its birth here. Many scholars of geopolitics anddefenceanalyists held Saudi Arabia and its ruling elite`s support to Wahabism as responsible for the present day terroristviolence in various parts of the world. Over more than two decades, Saudi Arabia has spent around $100 billion or more onworldwide promotion of the violent, intolerant and crudely Wahabist sect of Islam.Starting in late 1980’s Saudi Arabia began dispatching Wahabist clerics and radical preachers to Chechnya. The spread ofWahabism resulted in not only a separatist war against Russia but also a good deal of violence among Muslims.In 2003, a ‘United States Senate Committee on Terrorism’ bore testimony that in previous 20 years Saudi Arabia has spent$87 billion on promoting Wahabism. This includes financing 210 Islamic centers, 1500 mosques, 202 colleges and 2000 schools. This money smothers the voices of moderate Muslims and poison flows in to entire Muslim communityworldwide.Geopolitically speaking, Saudis want their domination in Middle East where Iran, Iraq, Syria as well as Lebanon are thecountries where religious ideologies are not inconformity with Saudi Arabia. Therefore Saudi Wahhabis have poured millionsof dollars to arm and incite the Sunni insurgents of Iraq and generated a terrorist movement which today has assumed theshape of Islamic State or IS (former ISIS). In Syria also, they are arming the anti-Assad regime to topple the presentgovernment.

GEOPOLITICAL EFFECTS OF WAHHABISM

Due to sponsorship by oil rich Saudi State, the rigid ideology of Wahhabism is rapidly spreading in various parts of theworld. Many scholars are worried about the consequences of the spread of this rigid and intolerant ideology. Some of itspossible geopolitical effects are as follow.’

1. Increase in Mutual Hatred within Islam: - Wahhabi ideology is intolerant towards other sects of Islam such as Shias, Sufis,Yazidis, and Ahmadiyas etc. The brutalkillings of Yazidis in Iraq by Islamic State terrorist forces recently and atrocities against Shias and Ahmadiyas in Pakistan is an example of how Wahhabism is encouraging mutual hatred towardscoreligionists in Islam.
2. Increase in Hatred towards Other Religions: - Wahhabism encourages hatred towards other religions such as

Christianism, Judaism, Hinduism and Buddhism. The Talibanian acts of destroying ancient Buddhist structures in

Afghanistan, hatred towards Jews etc. are the examples that Wahhabism has encouraged worldwide hatred towardsother religions .This will have dangerous impacts on world.

3. Increase in Discrimination against Ethnic Minorities: - Wahhabism is very intolerant regarding ethnic minorities. Its rapidspread will surely deteriorate the condition of ethnic minorities either living in Muslim states of Middle East or in any partof the world. For example the mass killing of Yazidis, a tiny religious minority of Iraq by Islamic state (former ISIS) militantsgives us a burning example of discrimination against ethnic minorities.
4. Encouragement to Widespread Violence: - Another geopolitical effect will be increase in terrorist violence supported bythis ideology to force a government to bend according to their demands will be encouraged. The widespread violence inChechnya is due to popularity of Wahabist ideology among the Muslim youth of that region under Russia. They declaredan armed struggle against Russia to attain independence and establish an Islamic State there.
5. Birth of a Number of Terror Organizations: - Influenced by Wahhabi ideology, a number of Islamic terrorist organizationshave emerged & will continue to have emerge until a full stop is not placed on this large scale expansion of this ideology.Some examples of terrorist organizations are Al-Qaida, Islamic Jihad, Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), Taliban, Tehrik -I-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Jamat-Ud-Dawa (JUD), Ansar Dine, Al Shabab,Boko Haram etc. are all influenced by WahhabiIdeology.
6. Threat to The Existence of Nations:- Many countries, where there is a sizable number of minority Muslim population,may face a challenge of breaking away. For example the rapid spread of Wahhabism in Chechnya has led to an armedstruggle between Russians and Islamic terror groups of Chechnya. Similarly, the rapid spread of this ideology, is heldWahabism and Global Terrorismresponsible by China for its ethnic unrest in its western province of Xinjiang inhabited by ethnic ‘Uyghur’ Muslim minoritypopulation.

Ways to Counter Terrorism generated by Wahabism

There has been a deceive shift in the thinking of nations in the world, towards the Wahhabist ideology and its relatedterrorist activities, after 9/11, attack of terrorists on U.S.A. Countering terrorism as well as to stop the expansion of Wahhabiideology has become a first priority of nations to ensure the security to their population. Thus, the intelligence and thesecurity systems of countries of the world must consider following measures in order to expand fundamental capacities ofnational security before offences of Wahhabi sect and its associated terrorism:

1. To Address and Eliminate Soft Threats of the Cyber Space: There should be proper strategic management of soft

security. Modern technology should be applied for raising the security index of cyber space. The main part of propagationof Wahhabi ideas is done through cyber space. Therefore, strict actions should be taken against such internet sites,satellite channels and other Medias of cyber space which display the ideas of Wahhabi sects. A strict ban should beimposed on them.

2. Compiling a Table of Risks of Terrorist Organizations Affiliated to Wahhabi Movement: - The intelligence, security,military and police authorities of nations should first prepare a list of sectarian terrorist organizations of their respectivecountries. After this, they should analyze what possible harms these sectarian terrorist outfits can do. After a carefulanalysis of these organizations, the weak points of governments own security systems should be removed and strictcounter actions should be taken against the activities of such organizations.
3. Studying the Causes behind the Spread of Wahhabi Ideology in a Country: - Governments as well as security system ofcountries worldwide first study the real causes behind the rapid spread of Wahhabism in their countries. After a carefulstudy of these causes, efforts should be made to eliminate, those causes. For example, if unemployment is a main causeof youth joining Wahhabi sponsored terrorism in a country, then the government of that country should generateemployment facilities and self-employment guarantee programs so that youth of all sections of society can be protectedfrom indulging in anti-social activities.
4. Plug the Sources of Funding to the Terror Organizations: - Government of all the countries should first identify fundsources of the Wahhabi influenced terror organizations then fund sources should be banned so that no financial aidshould reach to the terror organization. This move will hurt terrorist organizations badly.
5. Strengthening the Feeling of Unity in Diversity: - Governments of countries should consolidate the feelings of cultural aswell as communal harmony among their countrymen. If people of a country have these strong feelings in their mind thensuch ideologies cannot break the unity of a country.
6. Turning a National Strategy in to a Coalition Strategy: - Countries should join together in international efforts to

eliminate terrorism and defeat all such ideologies which encourage mutual hatred and incite a man to murder his fellowmen without any guilty. Therefore ‘a joint war’ against Wahhabi ideology sponsored terrorism should be launched’ toeliminate it from this world and save millions of precious human lives.

7. Immigration Laws and Its Enforcement Should be Strict: - Those immigrated organizations as well as individuals who arecaught promoting Wahhabi ideology should be immediately banned, their visas should be cancelled and they must beprosecuted as per the law of land of that country where they are caught. In this context there should be an internationaltreaty among the nations.

CONCLUSION

The act of terrorism in any of its from whether small of large is condemnable and those ideologies which encourageterrorist activities are too equally condemnable. No religion teaches to show cruelties in the poor and weaker sections ofsociety. But when religious teachings are interpreted & exploited in such a way that they serve the vested purposes of aparticular section of a society and render others i.e. weaker and minor section of society from their basic rights, then clashesbetween followers of different ideologies or thinking emerge. Similarly, the vested interests of British colonialism forcedBritain to support the al-Wahhab’s ideology and along with this just like Britain, the United State of America’s personalinterests in Middle East Asia also compelled U.S. to support Saudi sponsored Wahhabi ideology to teach former U.S.S.R, alesson and to defeat the ideology of communism through Mujahidin in Afghanistan. But these two superpowers`unawareness and blind support to this ideology is now inversely hurting them. Now these two superpowers are also sufferingfrom terrorist attacks in their own countries. To kill an innocent is a biggest sin considered by all religions. Therefore, theneed of hour is that all nations of the world should unite together to fights against this evil of terrorism generated byWahhabism. Such ideologies should not be allowed to popularize among the masses. Finally, the kingdom of Saudi Arabiashould introspect itself and must realize that to support such an intolerant and rigid ideology may hurt them badly one day.In the end, it can be said that Wahhabist ideology is a huge threat to the existence or integrity of nations of the world.Therefore, all efforts should be made to discourage its spread in a nation particularly among the minority communities.

REFERENCES

[1] Algar, Hamid. ‘Wahabism: A critical Essay, P.23.

[2] Blanchard, Christopher M., “The Islamic Traditions of Wahhabism&Salafiya” CRS Report for Congress (ReceivedThrough CRS Web) updated January25, 2006.

[3] Dillon, R. Michael, “WAHHABISM: IS IT A FACTOR IN THE SPREAD OF GLOBAL TERRORISM?” (THESIS) NAVAL

POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL, MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA, SEP. 2009.

[4] Dr. HediehMirahmadi&MehrinFarooq, “A community Based Approach to countering Radicalization-A Partnershipfor America.”December 2010, www.worde.org.

[5] Dr. Jacquelyn K. Davis and Dr. Charles M. Perry, “Rethinking The war on Terror- Developing a Strategy to CounterExtremist Ideologies (A Workshop Report).” Future Strategic Context for WMD – related Planning & operations HDTRA1-6-F-0054. March 2007.

[6] EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT--DIRECTORATE GENERAL FOR EXTERNAL POLICIES OF THE UNION, “THE INVOLVEMENT OFSALAFISM/WAHHABISM IN THE SUPPORT AND SUPPLY OF ARMS TO REBEL GROUPS AROUND THE WORLD.” June 11,2013 at http://www.europarl.europa.eu/activities/committies/studies.do?language=EN

[7] Fisk Robert, “Sunni Caliphate has been bank rolled by Saudi Arabia.” The Tribune (newspaper India), 18 June 2014. PageNo. 09 OPED WORLD.

[8] Fox, Johanathan, “Are Middle East conflicts More Religious?” The Middle East Quarterly, Fall 2001, Volume VIII: Number4 P.P. 31-40.

[9] Manthorpe, Jonathan, “Saudi Arabia Funding Fuels jihadist terror.” Vancouver sun Columnist, May 28, 2013.

[10] Moor, John, “The evolution of Islamic terrorism: an overview.” Frontline Magazine.

[11] Mousavi, SeyyedehRazieh, “Propagation Methods of Wahhabism in Khuzestan Province.” Published in: - InternationalJournal of Advanced Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences.’ Volume1, Issue 7, 2013, P.P.-764-773.

[12] “Saudi Arabia: The SAUD FAMILY AND WAHHABI ISLAM, 1500-1850.” Source: The Library of Congress Country Studies.http://workmail.com/wfb2001/saudi_arabia/saudi_arabia_history_the_saud_family_and_wahhabi_islam_1500_1850.html. Or www.geographic.org

[13] Schett Benjamin, “U.S. sponsored Islamic Fundamentalism”: The Roots of the US-Wahhabi Alliance. Source: GlobalResearch, Seoptember12, 2012.

[14] Schwartz, Stephen, “The Real Roots of Islamic Extremism.” The Dissident – POLITICS AND CULTURE FROM NEWPERSPECTIVES.

[15] Sheikh Abdul HadiPalazzi,” Wahhabism, the Saudi Arabia-based puritanical heresy at the base of Islamism.” Middle EastQuarterly. June 02, 2002.(Eretzyisroel.org)

[16] Stanley, Trevor, “Understanding the origins of Wahhabism&Salafism.” Publication: Terrorism Monitor, Volume: 3,Issue: 14. July 15, 2005. (The Jamestown Foundation).

[17] Stefen M. Aubrey, “COMBATING AL-QAEDA & THE JIHADIST IDEOLOGY –AN IN-PROGRESS REVIEW OF THE US NATIONALCOUNTER –TERRORISM STRATEGY.”Weatherhead Centre for International affairs, Harvard University, August 2005.

[18] The US 9/11 Commission Report, “WHAT TO DO? - A GLOBAL STRATEGY.” SEP, 2004.

[19] Two Faces of Islam, P. 74.

[20] Two Faces of Islam, P. 82.

[21] Wikipedia- The Free Encyclopedia: ‘The Islamic Terrorism.’

Compiled and researched by: SayyidBaqir Husayni

The shiites believe that those who had the honor of meeting the prophet and the privilege of being his companions,were not  of the same rank and according to Qur`anic verses and prophetic traditions were divided in to several groups.one group included the pure individuals of the highest merit whose valuable services facilitated the growth of the young tree of the islam.The following verses are some examples: سوره التوبه/100

والسابقون الاوّلون من المهاجرین   والانصاروالّذین اتّبعوهم باحسان رضی الله عنهم ورضوا عنه واعدّ لهم جنّات تجری تحتها الانهار خالدین فیها ابدا   ذالک الفوزالعظیم

فتح/18

لقد رضی الله عن المومنین اذ یبایعونک تحت الشجره فعلم ما فی قلوبهم فانزل السکینه علیهم واثابهم فتحا قریبا

حشر/8

للفقراءالمهاجرین الّذین اُخرجوا من دیارهم واموالهم یبتغون فضلاً من الله ورضواناً وینصرون اللّه ورسوله اولئک هم الصّادقون                                                                                   

فتح/29

                                                                                                                                 محمدرسول الله والّذین معه اشدّاء علی الکفّار رحماء بینهم تریهم رکّعاً سجّداً یبتغون فضلاً من الله ورضواناً سیماهم فی وجوههم من اثر السجود ذالک مثلهم فی التورته ومثلهم فی الانجیل

 احزاب/23

من المومنین رجالٌ صدقوا ما عاهدواللّه علیه فمنهم من قضی نحبه ومنهم من ینتظر وما بدّلوا تبدیلا

Second group included people who were rightful from the beginning, hypocrites, double dealers, black hearted or sinful. The following are Qur`anic verses concerning this group:

منافقون/1

اذا جاءک المنافقون قالوا نشهد انّک لرسول الّله والّله یعلم انّک لرسوله والّله یشهد انّ المنافقین لکاذبون

توبه/101

وممّن حولکم من الاعراب منافقون ومن اهل المدینه مردوا علی النّفاق لا تعلمهم نحن نعلمهم....  

This verse says a group of the people of Medina turned to hypocrisy. The holy prophet did not know them  ,and only God knew them.

احزاب/12

واذ یقول المنافقون والّذین فی قلوبهم مرض ما وعدنا الله ورسوله الّا غروراً

جمعه/11

واذا راو تجارهً او لهواًانفضّوا الیها وترکوک قائماً

According to this verse a group of companions were performing Friday prayer behind the holy prophet (a.s), but when a commercial caravan entered the city, they left him while the holy prophet was standing and the prayer had not been finished.

            *How do these companions lead the Muslim society to the straight path when they prefer the material world to obeying the holy prophet?

منافقون/4

واذا رایتهم تعجبک اجسامهم وان یقولوا تسمع لقولهم ...

This verse says, oh our prophet when you look at them (hypocrites),you would be pleased with their appearance .They appear in a very religious man and virtuous people and when they speak ,they speak so eagerly about Islam that you are

interested to hear.

*please judge honestly. How can the Muslims rely on these people and follow them?

Another group of verses are about the people who did not participate in war,because they feared of death. They were also hypocrite. The verse says:

یا ایّها الذین امنوا مالکم اذا قیل لکم انفروافی سبیل الله اثّاقلتم الی الارض

You are sticking to the earth, you are not ready to move.

This verse addresses الّذین امنوا  the Muslims ،the companions .It shows some of the companions are ready to go to the war and some of them are not.

some verses threat a group of companions :

وان تتولّوا یستبدل قوماً غیرکم

If they turn back to you, God would replace them with another people (another  generation).

So it indicates that at the time of the prophet there were companions that God threatened them.

Traditions about the justice of the prophet companions          

History has recorded the names of more than 120000 people as the companions of the holy prophet (a.s).There were various personalities among the companions. No doubt ,being the prophet`s companion was a great honor for a group whom the Muslim nation respects ,because they were the pioneers of Islam ,the one who erected the flag of Islamic  glory  for the first time ,but it does not mean that they were pure and just.

The Sunnis narrate a tradition from the holy prophet (a.s):

اصحابی کا لنّجوم با یّهم اقتدیتم اهتدیتم

If all of companions are just and can lead us to the straight path, so why do not you consider imam Al (who is also a companion too) just?

Concerning these two traditions from the holy prophet (a.s):

اصحابی کالنّجوم بایّهم اقتدیتم اهتدیتم

 And

علیکم بسنّتی وسنّه الخلفاءالراشدون من بعدی

 indicates a problem that if these two traditions are correct, then the holy prophet is inviting the Muslims to contradictory things and it is impossible,because when you say علیکم بسنّتی ,we can find some part of the sunnah of the holy prophet which is different from the sunnah of خلفاء راشدین .We can find some behaviours of خلفاء راشدین which are not only different from the holy prophet ,but also Omar was different from Abubakr,and imam Ali(a.s) was different from Omar and Abubakr. So how is it possible to follow them when they have different ways? When it says بایّهم اقتدیتم اهتدیتم this shows that this tradition is not correct, because the holy prophet (a.s) does not invite the people in contradictory things. For exampleصلوه التراویح was not the sunnah of prophet, but it was the sunnah of Omar. If a Muslim wants to practice to prophet`s sunnah what`s the sunnah of the prophet? perform the صلوه التراویح  individually .And what`s the sunnah ofخلفاءراشدین(especially Omar)?  It is performing  صلوه التراویح congregationally .What  is our duty? performing or not performing it, especially when Omar called this changing of the holy prophet`s sunnah نعم البدعه.

*Bokhari in Sahih ,vol 9 کتاب الفتن narrates  a tradition from the holy prophet that shows the position of the holy prophet on some of the companions:

یردوا علیّ یوم القیامهُ رهطٌ من اصحابی فیحلوء ون  عن الحوض فاقول یا ربّ اصحابی،فیقال:انّه لا علم لک بما احدث بعدک ،انّهم ارتدّوا علی ادبارهم القهقرا

At the day of judgment a group of my companions rush to me, the angle would push them away ,I (the holy prophet)say: they are my companions ,it is said :you don`t know they became unbelievers after you.

Now we should ask the dear Sunni brothers and sisters : Do you believe in Sahih of Bokhari or not? It says that some of the companions were unbelievers. The holy Qur`an says about this group of people:

البقره/ 161

انّ الّذین کفروا وماتوا وهم کفّار اولئک علیهم لعنه الله والملائکه والنّاس اجمعین

So if some of the companions died when they were unbelievers , then is it possible for them to lead us in straight way?

*Another tradition: Muslem in Sahih,vol 7,p 58 narrates a tradition from the holy prophet:

انّی لست اخشی علیکم ان تشرکوابعدی ولکنّی اخشی علیکم الّدنیا ان تنافسوا فیها وتقتلوا فتهلکوا کما هلک من کان قبلکم

I am not afraid of you becoming  mushrik after me, but I am afraid that you may return to this material world and compete with each other in this world about it (for having more)and you will kill each other and then you would be perished(destroyed)l like the generation before(like Nuh people and Lut people).

This tradition shows that you (my companions) are not immune of mistake and may turn to this material world.

*One example at the time of the holy prophet: The holy prophet in the last days of his life ordered everybody to follow Osama as the commander of the army  ,but some of the great man of Quraish refused it. How can you say all of the companions are just when they didn`t obey the holy prophet?

*Another tradition in Sahih of Muslem

Walidebn Oqbah(ولیدبن عقبه)who was one of the holy prophet`s companion, performed the morning prayer 4rak`ah (because he was drunk),when Muslims in the mosque criticized him, he said: I am well today, so  I can even perform more rak`ah. The second caliph gave him lashes.

If all of companions are just, so they shouldn`t be punished by Omar or Imam Ali (a.s).

*A logic reason:

At the time of Osman (the third caliph) some companions surrounded his house .Both sides were the holy prophet`s companions. Which one was right? Can we say both sides were right? Or in Camel and Seffin wars the both sides who were fighting with each other ,were the holy prophet`s companions. Were the both sides right? Is there two straight path? Or one side is right and the other side is wrong?

Shiites` view on Aisha

The Sunnis say because the holy prophet`s wives , including Aisha, are his companions, they are just .But we reject it ,as we reject the justice of all companions.

Another argument is that, they are infallible because they are the prophet`s wives.

 But our view is based on Qur`an which says:

ضرب الله مثلاً للّذین کفروا إمرأت نوح وامرأت لوط کانتا تحت عبد ین من عبادنا صالحین فخانتا هما فلم یغنیا عنهما من الله شیئاً وقیل الدّخل الناّر مع الدّاخلین     

الّتحریم/10

As this verse shows we know some wives of the prophets before the prophet Muhammad (a.s) who were not pure, Nuh`s wife and Lut`s wife .They were unbelievers (کافر).So the wives of the prophet may be unbelievers.

*The important point is that God has given wife of Lut and  wife of Nuh as an example of الّذ ین کفروا .So it is possible somebody like Aisha who is grown and is trained in the house of the holy prophet ,to be a bad one. Here the verse:

کانتا تحت عبد ین من عبادنا صالحین فخانتاهما فلم یغنیا عنهما من الله شیئاً....

Lut`wife and NUH`wife were also growned and trained under two prophets who were صالح ,but their virtuous didn`t influence on them.

*Another argument among Sunnis is that the prophet of Islam is different from the previous prophets,so his wives are different from their wives.He has an extra ordinary influence on his wives ,so that they became  virtuous women. This is also rejected by

 التحریم/4 :

ان تتوبا الی الله فقد صغت قلوبکما وان تظاهرا علیه فانّ الله هو مولیه وجبریل وصالح المومنین والملائکه بعد ذلک ظهیر

If you (two women) repent toward Allah  ,means that they had done something wrong and should repent.

وان تظاهرا علیه....

If you two ( Hafsa and Aisha ) supported each other against the prophet , but the prophet has strong supporters among them,الله ,جبریل,صالح المومنین and ملائکه

In SAHIH OF MUSLEM ,VOL 4, P 188 and

IN SAHIH OF BOKHARI ,VOL 1, P 101

There is tradition from IBN ABBAS(ابن عبّاس ) about the plot of Hafsa and Aisha against the prophet

A good point in “Al-Tahrim”chapter is that at the beginning  to the middle of the Surah it talks about two wives of the prophet .At the end of Surah it talks about two wives of two other  prophet :LUT and Nuh .

So if we study this Surah as a package ,we should say there is a relation between the two holy prophet`s wives and those wives of Nuh and Lut.Why they should come in one Surah, two at the beginning ,and two at the end of Surah ? Is it possible that Aisha and Hafsa as the wives of the prophet do something wrong?

The holy Qur`an says it is not only possible ,but also has happened .So it is possible that the fate of Aisha would be the same as the fate of wives of Nuh and Lut.

Second point is that it is possible even for some women who are not the wives of the prophet to be better than the prophet`s wives.سوره التّحریم/11و12 explain it more:

وضرب الله مثلاً للّذین امنوا إمرأت فرعون اذ قالت ربّ بن لی عند ک بیتاً فی الجنّه ونجّنی من القوم الظّالمین.و مریم ابنت عمران الّتی احصنت فرجها فنفخنا فیه من روحنا وصدّقت بکلمات ربّها وکتبه وکانت من القانتین

.
Allah gives two examples here for two women who were not in the house of the prophets, but he says :These are examples for الّذین امنواّ .One of them is  Pharaoh`s wife .Even she was the wife of Pharaoh ,the cruel one ,evil and satanic one ,but she was believer(مومن).Another one isمریم.Then what we can understand here is, that although حفصه and عایشه are the holy prophet`s wives, but respecting Pharaoh`s wife  is recomended by Qur`an more than respecting حفصه and عایشه.

The relationship of the holy prophet and his companions in the Qur`an and traditions

As I said before, according to the holy Qur`an and prophet `s sunnah the companions were divided in to two groups .Some of them are denounced, and some of them are admired. I mentioned some verses and traditions regarding them, in previous section. Now something more:

Some of the companions were not pleased by the rulings made by prophet Muhammad (a.s):

According to different verses of Quran obeying prophet Mohammad means obeying Allah .This matter can be clearly seen in the following verse:

وما ارسلنا من رسول الّا لیطاع باذن الله ولو انّهم اذ ظلمواانفسهم جاءوک واستغفرواللّه واستغفر لهم الّرسول لوجدواللّه توّاباُ رحیماُ.فلا وربّک لا یومنون حتّی یحکّموک فیما شجر بینهم ثمّ لایجدوا فی انفسهم حرجاُ ممّا قضیت وسلّموا تسلیماُ

There are two narrations about why these verses were revealed: The prophet`s cousin  Zubair b. Avvan had a disagreement with  Hatib b.Abi Beltea about the use of the water rights. They came to the prophet to solve the disagreement. The prophet said :"o Zubair! First you use the water, and then leave it for your neighbo r. Hatib didn`t like this decision and became angry, saying: "oh Allah`s apostle, have you made such a decision, because he is your cousin?

Whatever the reason for the revelation of these verses, it is clear that true faith in the holy prophet was to be achieved through submission to him.

When addressing the prophet, the companions speaking in a loud voice: In the Qur`an it is clearly stated that the companions should not raise their voice above that of the prophet when talking to him.

Al-Hujurat     ( حجرات( 2-3

یا ایّها الّذین امنوا لا ترفعوا اصواتکم فوق صوت النّبی ولا تجهروا له بالقول کجهر بعضکم لبعض ان تحبط اعمالکم وانتم لا تسعرون.انّ الّذین یغضّون اصواتهم عند رسول الله اولئک الّذین امتحن الله قلوبهم للتّقوی لهم مغفره واجر عظیم

The reason for the revelation is that a committee from Bani Temim and Abubakr said that Ka`ka b.Ma`bed should be appointed as their chief by the prophet .Omar was not pleased with this offer,and wanted Aka b. Habis to be appointed .As Abubakr and Omar began to debate the matter in raised voices, the above verses were revealed.

Despite stern warnings by the prophet, the arches abandoned their positions in the Battle of Uhud:

At the battle of uhud a regiment of arches, under the command of Abdullah b. Jubair ,were positioned by the slope of a strategic pass and they were sternly warned."Even if you see that we have defeated them, don`t abandon your positions! Even if you see that we are defeated, don`t run to our aid !Despite this ,when they saw that the unbelievers had been defeated, they abandoned their positions in a desire for the spoils of war. In fact, Abdullah b. Jubair reminded them of the prophet`s order ,but in vain. The following verses indicate the serious error of the archers and importance of obeying the prophet.

Al-Imran: 152-153 (آل عمران)

ولقد صدقکم اللّه وعده اذ تحسّونهم باذنه حتّی اذا فشلتم وتنازعتم فی الامر وعصیتم من بعد ما اریکم ما تحبّون منکم من یرید الدّنیا ومنکم من یریدالاخره ثمّ صرفکم عنهم لیبتلیکم ولقد عفا عنکم والله ذو فضل علی المومنین. اذتصعدون ولا تلوون علی احدوالرّسول یدعوکمفی اخریکم فاثابکم غمّاُ لکیلا تحزنوا علی ما فاتکم ولاما اصابکم والله خبیربما تعملون

The attempt by a companion to inform the Quraysh of the secret preparations   of the prophet to conquer Mecca

When Quraysh violated The Hudaybiah Treaty , prophet Muhammad (a.s) began to secretly prepare to conquer Mecca, he took precautions that the Quraysh did not hear anything about  his preparations and that no news of it would leak to Mecca.In fact ,other than a few of companions no one was aware of this aim .Despite all the care ,Habib b .Abi Beltea somehow learned of the situation and sent a woman to carry a letter to Mecca.Allah informed the prophet of this via the angel Gabriel.The holy prophet sent Ali,Abdullah b. Zubair and Mikdad b. Aswad to distance of 40 km from Medina and orderd them to take the letter from the woman .They brought the letter to the prophet. Then he asked Hatib :"Why did you do this?" He replied:"I am from Ansar ,not of Quraysh .Here the emigrants who are with you, have relatives in Mecca to protect their families and goods .I wanted to make friends to protect my relatives in Mecca .I didn`t do this, to deny my religion or to approve of disbelief after becoming a Muslim .Then the following verse was revealed.

Al-Mumtahana :1 (الممتحنه /1)

یا ایّها الّذین امنوا لا تتّخذوا عدوّی وعدوّکم اولیاء تلقون الیهم با لمودّه وقد کفروا بما جاءکم من الحقّ یخرجون الرّسول وایّاکم ان تومنوا با لله ر بّکم ان کنتم خرجتم جهاداُ فی سبیلی وابتغاء مرضاتی تسرّون االیهم بال مودّه وانا اعلم بما اخفیتم وما اعلنتم و من یفعله منکم فقد ضلّ سواء السّبیل

There are also some companions whom the holy prophet admired:

Dorr -Almansour of Soyouti, vol 8, p 589 from Jabir b. Abdullah:

کنّا عند النّبی ،فاقبل علیّ،فقال النّبی :والّذی نفسی بیده انّ هذا وشیعته لهم الفائزون یوم القیامه ونزلت :انّ الّذین امنوا وعملو الصّالحات اولئک خیر البریّه

We were to the prophet, then Ali entered, then the prophet (referred to him)and said :by Allah, this man and his followers will be at paradise and then the above verse was revealed.

When this verse ofسوره البیّنه was revealed, the companions asked the holy prophet :"who are خیرالبریّه?" He answered:"علیّ وشیعته"

The other tradition is in Musnad of Ibn Hanbal,vol 2,p 654 from the holy prophet:

یا علی ،ابشر فانّک واصحابک فی الجنّه

               Verily you and your companions and your followers are in the paradise.

There are many traditions in different books of Shiites and sunnis from the holy prophet about Ali (a.s) .For example Nessaee who is the writer of Sunan (one of the six Sahih of Sunnis` brothers ) has written a book about the of Imam Ali(a.s)

 He has narrated a lot of traditions from the holy prophet about him .For instance   : a tradition narrated by Muslem ,Bokhari,Hakem,Imam Ahmad b. Hanbal ,Ibn Maja and….

انت منّی بمنزله هارون من موسی الّا انّه لا نبیّ بعدی

انا مدینه العلم وعلی بابها

من کنت مولاه فعلی مولاه

Historical argument: In history and also in tradition books we read that Muaviah ordered Sa`d b. Abi Vaghghas what did prevent you from cursing Aba Torab?

(ما منعک ان تسبّ ابا تراب؟)

He answered: whenever I remember three things that the holy prophet said about Ali,I can`t curse him

(فقال امّا ذکرت ثلاثاُ قال هنّ رسول الله فلن اسبّه )

1-When the prophet went for Tabuk war  ,he appointed him  as his successor .

2-At the battle of khaibar, the prophet had said ;”whoever can go and stop Jews, he is my brother and my deputy.

3-At the verse of Mobahelah Ali is the same soul of the prophet (انفسنا)

So Ali is the prophet`s brother.

Therefore by studding the mentioned verses and traditions we can conclude that all of the companions are not just and cannot lead the Muslims.

By : Batoul Sadat Hosseini Saadat

Arbaeen, also known as “Arbaeen Hussaini”, is the fortieth day after Ashura. Ashura is the tenth day of Muharram, the day on which Imam Hussain (AS), the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, and his companions were martyred in the Battle of Karbala in 61 AH (680 AD). Arbaeen is calculated by the date of the Hijri calendar and usually falls on the 20th of Safar.

On Arbaeen, a ceremony is held to commemorate the martyrdom of Imam Hussain (AS) and his companions. The day holds special significance in Shia culture, and many Shias make a pilgrimage to the shrine of Imam Hussain (AS) in Karbala. The pilgrimage to Karbala during Arbaeen is one of the largest religious gatherings in the world, with millions of people from all over the world participating in the ceremony.

Arbaeen is an opportunity to remember the values such as justice, sacrifice, and resistance to oppression that Imam Hussein (AS) and his companions fought and were martyred for.

First of all, we do not consider these ceremonies as an obligatory part of religion and we don't believe that avoiding them is unlawful (haram). But as we celebrate our darlings' birthday, we also celebrate the birthday of our prophet, his household, and even the anniversary of the day of Mab'ath. In this way, we thank God and show our love to the prophet, his family and Qur'an.

This issue is not only forbidden (Haram) in Islam, but also we have reasons in Qur'an that confirm it. These ceremonies are reverence and respect to the prophets and saints of religion as we have in surah HAJ verse 32:"

"مَنْ يُعَظِّمْ شَعائِرَ اللَّهِ فَإِنَّها مِنْ تَقْوَى الْقُلُوبِ":

"Respecting the rites of Allah represents the purity of heart and the state of piety of the pilgrim." And our prophet, his household and the day of mab'ath are all signs of Allah and we know it as our duty to respect them and thank God for the sake of them. Or about our prophet, we have in surah A'araf, verse 157 :

"....فَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا بِهِ وَ عَزَّرُوهُ وَ نَصَرُوهُ وَ اتَّبَعُوا النُّورَ الَّذِي أُنْزِلَ مَعَهُ أُولئِكَ هُمُ

الْمُفْلِحُونَ‏."

So those who believe in him and honour him, and help him, [in Allah's Way] and follow the light which has been sent down with him, they are indeed the ones who receive salvation."

Believing, helping, and respecting him does not belong just to his age, but in all times these issues should be considered. Taking part in these ceremonies, we announce and renew our royalty (bay'at) to him and his path. When we hold a ceremony for one of the households of Rasul of Allah(pbuh), in fact we act according to the verse 23 of surah Shura:

"قُلْ لا أَسْئَلُكُمْ عَلَيْهِ أَجْراً إِلَّا الْمَوَدَّةَ فِي القربی"

Say [O, Messenger!]: "No wage I ask you for my mission, but all I expect is the affection to my near kin."

In this way we show our love and respect to his household.

To explain more, let's see what we do in these ceremonies?

Usually, a lecturer is invited to speak about our prophet or his  household, their characteristics, behavior, sayings, and their attitudes in different situations of their lives as it is mentioned in the history of Islam. Which of these do you think is against Islam or Qur'an?

In ceremony days, helping the poor, giving gifts and being kind to each other is a custom. Are these forbidden or recommended in Qur'an?

What do you think if the prophet of Islam were here among us and see people doing such activities, would he appreciate or punish these people?

We also have funeral ceremonies. One of them is the anniversary of martyrdom of Imam Hussein(the nephew of Rasul of Allah (pbuh) and his men in Moharram. Holding this ceremony, we remind the muslims that the nephew of our prophet and his men were called  nonmuslims and killed in a  horrible way by the caliphate of muslims who claimed he was the successor of the prophet. This is exactly the reason why some apparently Islamic governments oppose against us and  call us polytheist(moshrek). These ceremonies act as a warning for muslims of the world to be more careful and not follow those who think are landlord of the muslims but for the sake of power and their own material benefits they are ready to kill even innocent baby muslims as you see in Yemen.

Of course, those who claim birthday celebration is forbidden (haram) in Islam, beforehand had said that using  telephone and telegram is haram and against the sunnah and then they themselves had to use it and commit this "haram"! Recently, they have given Fatwa(Islamic decree) that if a man becomes very hungry and   finds nothing to eat is allowed to eat some or all body of his wife! Would you ever really think of acting according to such a decree?

Meanwhile, our prophet didn't perform or use a lot of things from new technology . He never travelled by airplane, never used TV, mobile, Internet. Can we say they are haram because our prophet didn't use them?

Moreover, reviving the history of Islam, these ceremonies make our new generation more familiar with Qur'an, Islam and the prophet. It is a suitable program to confront the cultural attack against our youth by nonmuslims.

At the end, These ceremonies strengthen and stabilize the values of faith and moral foundations. Remembering the prophets, saints, martyrs, truthful and sincere followers of the school of  the prophets, faith, piety, jihad and their sacrifices and how they attempted to perform the divine revelation is a strong incentive to make people follow them and consider them as a pattern in their life.

After all, we ask Allah to guide all of us to the right path.

By: z.khodaparast

By Humaira Ahad

In Tehran’s District 7, on the otherwise quiet Saboonchi Street, the laughter of children once echoed between painted walls and playground swings.

These joyful shrieks were silenced on June 25, 2025, when an Israeli airstrike turned Ranginkaman Kindergarten into rubble.

Adorned with cheerful murals and vibrant classrooms, the kindergarten now stands as stark evidence of a deliberate act of aggression by the child-murdering regime, an unmistakable and blatant violation of international humanitarian law.

The attack, carried out during the unprovoked and unlawful 12-day Israeli war on Iran, levelled the Ranginkaman Kindergarten along with nearby residential homes. The location was entirely civilian, serving solely as a place where toddlers gathered to learn and play.

The kindergarten that almost became a mass grave

Ranginkaman, meaning “rainbow” in Persian, had only been operating for a year.

The play school was known for its cheerful atmosphere, colorful furniture, and dedicated staff. The kindergarten had served as a modest refuge for working-class families in Tehran, a place where they entrusted their children each day while they went to work.

Inside its modest building, walls were decorated with children’s art, and the yard held a swing set in the corner; everything was designed to bring joy and comfort to the young kids.

The sense of joy vanished in an instant when an Israeli terrorist strike struck the kindergarten, shattering the calm and leaving behind a scene of chaos, smoke, and blood.

Just before the attack, there were 20 children inside the kindergarten. Mehri Vatankhah, the director of Ranginkaman, had been increasingly concerned about the rising intensity of air defence activity over the skies of Tehran.

In an interview, she recalled the chilling minutes leading up to the decision to evacuate.

“That day we tried to sing more songs and poems with the children, hoping their voices would drown out the sound of the air defence systems,” she said. “But after lunch, the noise was too loud. I knew I had to call the parents and get the kids out.”

According to Vatankhah, she and her staff contacted the families and began sending the children home early that day. The final child was picked up at approximately 3:20 p.m.

Ten minutes later, the building was destroyed in an Israeli missile strike.

“Had the evacuation been delayed even slightly, the attack would have resulted in one of the deadliest mass killings of children in Iranian history,” a parent, still recuperating from the shock, stated.

A house of joy turned into rubble

The scenes left behind are etched in the minds of those who visited the kindergarten following the brutal Israeli strike. Shattered glass covers the pavement. Children's animated books, half-burned, lie beneath collapsed walls.

What was once a colourful, vibrant learning space is now blackened rubble.

“It had been about a year since this kindergarten was established on Saboonchi Street. From the very first day Ranginkaman opened its doors, few could have imagined that the image of collapsed walls, charred photographs of children, and shattered glass would be the final memory left of this place,” said a parent whose 3-year-old child went to the play school.

Another parent spoke of the terrifying thought of what could have unfolded if the children had remained at the kindergarten.

“Seeing the photos, just imagining that even a tiny scar from broken glass could’ve marked my child’s face still makes me sick,” she said.

The attack, as a deliberate act of terror, was a part of a 12-day war of aggression by Israel to destabilise the Iranian society by targeting civilian infrastructure.

According to official figures, Israel's attacks on Iran have claimed the lives of 1,062 people, including around 140 women and children. Approximately 5,800 others have been injured.

The aggression was launched in the early hours of June 13 and resulted in the martyrdom of many high-ranking military officials, scientists and ordinary citizens in the initial wave.

A broader pattern: children as victims of Israeli aggression

The attack on Ranginkaman is not an anomaly when placed in the broader context of Israeli assaults. It echoes a pattern that has been unfolding for decades, particularly in Gaza.

According to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), since the beginning of Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza on October 7, 2023, Israel has been killing the equivalent of an entire school class of children every single day, with class sizes averaging 35-45 students.

“Every day since the beginning of the war in Gaza, an average of an entire school class of children has been killed,” Sam Rose, UNRWA’s Director of Operations in Gaza, said on Wednesday.

Medical sources in Gaza report that over 18,000 Palestinian children have been killed since the beginning of Israel’s genocidal war on the besieged territory. Another 16,854 have been hospitalised.

The ongoing war has left over 197,000 dead or wounded, and the majority of them are women and children. More than 11,000 people are still missing, many likely buried under the rubble. Famine conditions have taken the lives of dozens more, including infants.

The deliberate bombing of homes, schools, hospitals, and bakeries has long marked Israel’s genocide in Gaza. Now, with the strike on Ranginkaman Kindergarten in Tehran and attacks on hospitals, residential houses, and ambulances across Iran, this systematic assault on civilian infrastructure exposes a ruthless strategy aimed at destroying the very foundations of civilian life.

Press TV’s website

Palestinian medical officials report the death of at least two more heavily-malnourished Palestinian children in the Gaza Strip, which has been enduring a 21-month-long Israeli war of genocide, coupled with starvation tactics by the regime.

Medical officials in Gaza confirmed on Tuesday that Yousef al-Safadi, a child from the north, and Abdul Hamid al-Ghalban, from the south in the city of Khan Yunis, had died of starvation.

Pro-Palestinian campaigners and human rights activists reacting to the development lamented that the young ones’ bodies had given out in a place where “food has been turned into a weapon.”

They were referring to the Israeli regime’s resorting back in May to further lethal restrictions on its already stringent 2007-present siege of Gaza as a means of, what critics call, trying to maximize fatalities.

Gaza’s doctors note how the coastal sliver’s hospitals, already shattered by months of siege and bombardment, are now overwhelmed by cases of malnourishment.

Hundreds of children, parents, and the elderly arrive daily, most barely conscious, and some unable to speak, they decry.

The physicians report haunting symptoms of advanced starvation, including patients forgetting their own names, and collapsing mid-sentence from exhaustion.

According to UNRWA, the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, more than 17,000 children are suffering from acute malnutrition.

Between March and June alone, the number of malnourished children under five doubled, the body adds.

In total, UNRWA screened 74,000 children and found 5,500 cases of severe acute malnutrition and over 800 already in critical wasting, a term meaning the body’s beginning to nourish on itself.

The warfare, which began in response to a long-overdue historic resistance operation against decades of deadly occupation and aggression by the regime, has already claimed the lives of more than 59,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children.

Press TV’s website 

President Masoud Pezeshkian has thoroughly dismissed efforts and incitement by the United States and its allies, particularly the Israeli regime, to push for termination of Iran’s nuclear energy program.

The chief executive made the remarks during an interview with Qatar’s Al Jazeera television network on Tuesday, asserting that uranium enrichment on the Iranian soil would continue in the future within the framework of the international law.

The official’s remarks concerned, what critics have denounced as, a feverish campaign by Washington and Tel Aviv to supposedly eliminate the nuclear program under the pretext of its “deviation towards military purposes.”

The campaign has seen the duo exercise intense pressure on the global stage towards painting the nuclear work in a bad light and even resort to many rounds of military aggression against the Islamic Republic’s nuclear facilities.

Apparently addressing US President Donald Trump’s repeated allegations of the US’s having delivered debilitating blows to the program, Pezeshkian said, “To claim that our nuclear program has ended is an illusion.”

“Nuclear capability resides in the minds of our scientists, not in our facilities.”

The Iranian president, meanwhile, repeated the Islamic Republic’s outright rejection of nuclear weapons and its strict pursuance of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. The assertion has been proven unexceptionally right by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)'s inspectors, despite their conducting unprecedentedly rigorous inspections of Iran’s nuclear facilities.

“We categorically reject possessing nuclear weapons,” the president said, adding, “This is our political, religious, human, and strategic position.”

Pezeshkian also repeated Iran’s preparedness for negotiations that do not deny it of its right to peaceful uranium enrichment, but asserted that “any future negotiations must be based on a win-win logic.”

Elsewhere in his remarks, the official underlined the Islamic Republic’s readiness to respond in kind to any fresh act of aggression by the Israeli regime targeting the nuclear program.

Last month, Iran’s Armed Forces deployed hundreds of ballistic missiles and drones in the face of an unprovoked Israeli war, forcing the regime to request a ceasefire only after 12 days.

“We are fully prepared for any Israeli military action, and our forces stand ready to strike deep into the occupied territories once again.”

Pezeshkian also noted how the regime has been trying to hide the sheer extent of the losses it has suffered as a result of the Iranian strikes.

The official cited the regime’s requesting the ceasefire just after 12 days, saying the request “says a great deal” concerning the effectuality of Iran’s reprisal.

Press TV’s website

A third Palestinian child dies in the Gaza Strip within 24 hours of the starvation that is being imposed with full force by the Israeli regime as a means of lending further brutality to Tel Aviv’s genocidal war on the coastal sliver.

The weeks-old infant was identified as Yahya al-Najjar, who died at the Nasser Hospital in the southern Gazan city of Khan Younis on Saturday.

Journalists worldwide shared harrowing pictures of the victim, which showed him lying lifelessly on the hospital bed, his body bearing clearly visible signs of extreme malnutrition.

“This is Baby Yahya Al-Najjar, and Israel's starvation has just killed him in Khan Younis,” Gaza-based journalist Ahmed al-Najjar wrote on his social media account on X.

“We scream, our children cry to the world— but no answer,” he added.

“2.3 million are on the way if no food allowed to enter into the blockaded war-torn Gaza Strip!” wrote Motasem A Dalloul, another journalist reporting from the territory.

‘Only a sip of milk away from survival’

“His tiny body only needed a sip of milk to survive,” wrote a pro-Palestinian blogger.

“He died waiting. He died hungry.”

Palestinian sources, meanwhile, also underlined the absence of the means of serving Yahya with the required medical care that could save him, as another factor contributing to his premature demise.

The fatality was among the roughly-116-strong Palestinians, who were killed throughout the territory as a result of Israeli brutality on Saturday.

As many as 38 of the deaths occurred as a result of Israeli attacks against those, who had crammed themselves around US- and Israeli-backed so-called food distribution centers in the southern Gazan city of Rafah.

‘1000s teetering on edge of catastrophic starvation’

The centers have been denounced for serving rather as “death traps” for Gazans, thousands of whom are on the “verge of catastrophic hunger,” according to the United Nations.

The mass starvation has been brought about by the Israeli regime’s tightening its 2007-present siege of Gaza to insufferable levels.

The restrictions have reduced Gaza’s food intake to nearly zero, forcing Palestinians to swarm around the distribution centers, where Israeli aggression is a regular occurrence.

The overall situation has prompted vehement criticism of Tel Aviv over its using starvation as a “weapon of war” throughout the genocide.

Since its inception in October 2023, the warfare has already claimed the lives of more than 58,700 Palestinians, mostly women and children.

Press TV’s website