Tag Archives: Ali

The Abbasid Family

If you recall, Muhammad had a number of uncles. Abu Talib raised him, then when Muhammad was married, he and another uncle, Abbas, each took one of Abu Talib’s younger sons to foster. Abbas’s wife became a believer very early, … Continue reading

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The Rule and Death of Ali, 661

All of these events had taken just over a year to play out (though the arbitration process may have gone on longer). Ali remained Caliph of the eastern portion of the Islamic Empire, with nominal control of Arabia. Mu’awiya ruled … Continue reading

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Mu’awiya’s Tricky Triumph, 659

Back at the negotiating table, Mu’awiya sent Amr, the conqueror of Egypt, to represent him. Ali could have sent an equally astute general, his cousin al-Ashtar, but the fighting men insisted on Abu Musa, who had been Ali’s appointed governor … Continue reading

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The First Terrorists at Nahrawand

In a culture where it takes days to get anywhere and weeks to exchange messages, nothing happens fast unless it’s done with a knife. So once the battle had been set aside, with an agreement to find a negotiated path, … Continue reading

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The Battle of Siffin, 657

At last, after refusing to resign and circulating insulting satire against Caliph/Imam Ali, Mu’awiya made a formal allegation that Ali had engineered the death of Caliph Uthman. Further, he challenged Ali’s position as Caliph at all. In his allegation, he … Continue reading

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The Umayyad Challenge to Ali

After the Battle of the Camel, Ali settled matters in Basra, paying those who had fought for him out of the official treasury. With Basra secured, he rode north to Kufa and stayed there. To some extent, the future of … Continue reading

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The Battle of the Camel, 656

Ali’s army from Medina, joined by several thousand men from Kufa, camped on a wide plain outside Basra in Iraq. Facing them on the plain was an equally large army from Mecca, joined by several thousand men from Basra. But … Continue reading

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Ali: Caliph or Imam? 656

For some period of time, probably two days but perhaps more, the people of Medina processed what had just occurred. The rebels, and some of the citizens, went to Ali to insist that he should become Caliph next. The six-man … Continue reading

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Revolt And Death of Uthman, 655-6

Another Umayyad cousin named Marwan was Uthman’s chief secretary, or probably Chief of Staff. As in the White House, access to the ruler goes through the Chief of Staff. Marwan could determine who got to talk to Uthman, and he … Continue reading

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Protests Against Uthman, 654

Twenty years before this time, Abu Bakr had been Caliph and the first conquests in Mesopotamia and Syria had planted the first Arab Muslim towns. Approximately sixteen years before this time, the garrison cities of Kufa, Basra and Fustat had … Continue reading

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