Why Shiite pilgrimage to Karbala had special meaning this year

Over the years, the Shiite pilgrimage to the shrine of Imam Hussein in Karbala, Iraq – bigger than the hajj – has been a frequent target of Sunni militants, including ISIS. But the faithful keep coming, and ISIS is in retreat.

Workshop: Sectarianism in the Middle East – Think Tank

Sectarian conflict and polarisation has become a key feature of Middle East politics in the aftermath of the Arab uprisings of 2011. This workshop looked at some of the key drivers of this, such as the troubled legacy of foreign intervention, state failure, regional rivalries between Saudi Arabia, Iran and others, ruling strategies of authoritarian regimes as well as the spread of identity and sect-based political movements.

‘One by one, the girls died’

Members of Iraq’s Shia Turkmen community have been the targets of brutal persecution by so-called Islamic State (IS). One woman, who asked not to be named, told BBC Turkish’s Mahmut Hamsici about her ordeal at the hands of militants from the Sunni jihadist group.

WARNING: This story makes for very unpleasnt reading!

CISS Research Series Paper 3: Abd al-Karim Haeri Yazdi: Founder of the Modern Hawza of Qom

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At least 50 die in twin attacks in Iraq

At least 50 people have been killed in two attacks in southern Iraq, health officials say. In the first attack, a suicide bomber detonated his vest and gunmen opened fire inside a roadside restaurant near Nasiriya, the capital of Dhiqar province, security sources said. Soon afterwards, a car bomb exploded at a nearby checkpoint.

See also alJazeera
See also Washington Post

Saudi Arabia on brink of flare up as HRC chief blasts Bahrain VOB.ORG

The situation in Saudi Arabia is deteriorating sharply due to the ill-conceived policies of the ruling Al Saud family. In the past week, the regime arrested scores of prominent figures including religious scholars who had supported the regime in the past. They include Salman AlAwdah and Aa’edh Al Qarni.

Shia as Internal Others: A Salafi Rejection of the ‘Rejecters’

Conflict and polemic between Sunni Muslims and Shiites have a long history. In the contemporary era, this polemic has been accentuated by the conflictual situation in the Middle East, and it is also colouring the minority Muslim situation.

Incidents of Anti-Shiism in August, 2017 – Shia Rights Watch

Scores of violations bear witness to the continued systematic targeting of the Shia Muslim population around the world. The breaches of human rights range from arrest and detainment to sexual abuse and torture in prisons, and as seen this month, mass execution.

Salvation and Suffering in Ottoman Stories of the Prophets

Introduction: salvation history and stories of the prophets The Islamic genre of the stories of the prophets (qiṣaṣ al-anbiyāʾ) derives from narrative exegesis of the various references to biblical and Arabian prophets in the Qurʾān.

Includes a discussion of Fuẓūlī Baghdādī (d. 963/1556).

Playing both sides against the middle: Saudi engages with Iraqi Shiites

Saudi Arabia, with the Islamic State on the ropes in Iraq, is forging ties to Iraqi Shiite leaders and offering to help fund reconstruction of Mosul and other predominantly Sunni Muslim cities that were devastated in the military campaign against the jihadist group.