In Iran, Shia Muslims make up the majority, with 92.2% of all Muslim population in the country belonging to this sect. The most dangerous and arguably the least understood is the Sunni-Shia divide. The "holy status" was invented by hated Sunni rulers about 50 years after Muhammad's death, and thus to Shi'ites is an illegal innovation. Iraq War Deepens Sunni-Shia Divide When the United States invaded Iraq four years ago, it didn't set out to deepen the Sunni-Shia divide in the Islamic world. The Safavid conversion of Iran from Sunnism to Shiism took place roughly over the 16th through 18th centuries and made Iran the spiritual bastion of Shia Islam against the onslaughts of Sunni Islam. 1.Shia Iran and Sunni Saudi Arabia 2.b 3.b 4.d 5.c 6.arid 7.a 8.c 9.Democracy Cyprus Lebanon Monarchy Qatar Saudi Arabia 10.flawed democracy Diverse 11.a 12.d 13.a 14.b 15.b 16.a 17.c For the last three go to Brainly. Hazaras, who are Afghanistan’s third largest ethnic group and account for 10-15 percent of the predominantly Sunni country’s population, are mainly Shia and have suffered persecution for centuries. As one Shia scholar put it, at the time the Iranian foreign policy was “Sunni”. In Saudi Arabia, however, Iran’s growing influence in Iraq was perceived as a major threat. The low oil price is a problem for both. [citation needed] It made Iran the repository[peacock term] of Persian cultural traditions and self-awareness of Iranianhood, acting as a bridge to modern Iran. For Iran, it is all about regional interests. This is based on numerous factors, one undoubtedly includes the widespread distrust and often dislike of the Shia clergy by a large number of Iranian Shi'ites, a phenomenon that is… Iran is the heart of Shia Islam. The salient Sunni and Shia identity in Pakistan created during the 1980s to 1990s, as a result of the state’s exclusionary policies of Sunni-centric Islamization, violence against Shias by Sunni sectarian militants, and state patronage given to such outfits and Iranian Revolution, are sensitive to geopolitics in the Middle East and Pakistan’s policy towards Saudi Arabia and Iran. They comprise about 85% of Muslims, while Shia Muslims are the second largest denomination at over 10% of Muslims. For a long time, the majority Shia Muslims were discriminated by the Sunni-dominated regime. [159] In Bahrain, the Sunni Al Khalifa dynasty rules over a Shia majority denied its rightful place in the system, but Manama blames Tehran for fomenting unrest. 1979 was a pivotal year in the Muslim world. After the 2003 war and fall of Saddam Hussein, Shia Muslims stepped into power, targeting Sunni Muslims through government death squads and torture. Sunni vs Shia. The majority of Muslims are Sunnis - … As a scholar of Islam and a public educator, I often field questions about Sunnis, Shias and the sects of Islam. The exaggerated (though not always concocted) Shia-Sunni prism has successfully damaged social equilibriums around the world, not excluding Pakistan, a former ally in the RCD club with Iran … Sunni Muslims are the largest denomination of the Islam religion. Right now, the majority of Shias mostly live in Iran, Iraq, Azerbaijan, and Bahrain. In recent years, toxic polemics disseminated mainly by scheming politicians, ultra-conservative clerics loyal to Saudi Arabia and Iran made the dreaded full-blown Sunni-Shia civil war across the Muslim world a … The Iranian revolution of 1979 launched a radical Shia Islamist agenda that was perceived as a challenge to conservative Sunni regimes, particularly in the Gulf. The dominance of Shi’a Islam in Iran is a relatively new development, having only come about in the 16th century. One strategy that authorities are not pursuing, however, is development. On the other hand, Iranian Shi’as generally see Sunnis as Muslim, but as practioncers of a flawed form of Islam. Emergence of a Shi’a Iran. Iran is a Shia Muslim majority state often in tension with Sunni states and extremist groups like the Islamic State or al-Qaeda. Saudi Arabia is the most powerful purveyor of Sunni Islam, far and away the larger sect. The Iranian … Iranian authorities have been exerting considerable effort to stem the spread of Salafism and Wahhabism into Iran’s mainly Hanafi Sunni majority regions. Iran’s Islamic revolution, which brought Shias to power in 1979, and the Sunni backlash have fueled a competition for regional dominance. Iran’s alliance system is largely based not only in Shi’ite communities in Lebanon and Iraq, but also in other non-Sunni groups, such as the Syrian regime leadership. The Iranian revolution of 1979 launched a radical Shia Islamist agenda that was perceived as a challenge to conservative Sunni regimes, particularly in the Gulf. Non-Sunni Iranian opposition parties, and Shia like Ayatollah Jalal Gange’i have criticised the regime's treatment of Sunnis and confirmed many Sunni complaints. Iranians Are Trapped in a Sunni-Shiite Détente Dissidents seeking refuge in Turkey are getting sacrificed to a newfound friendship between Tehran and Ankara. IRAQ This is the heartland of the global Shia community. Saudi Arabia is struggling in its war in Yemen, where it has been trying since 2012 to help the government of Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi reassert itself against the Houthi rebels who have taken over much of the western part of the country. This religious schism is reflected in the wider map of the Middle East, where other countries have Shia or Sunni majorities, some of whom look towards Iran or Saudi Arabia for support or guidance. While the Sunni Sheikh al-Azhar Mahmud Shaltut placed the Jafari school of thought on an equal footing with the four Sunni schools in a ground-breaking step in 1959, a corresponding fatwa has yet to be issued by Shia clerics. So what’s the difference between Sunni and Shia? Here is Part 3, on the conflicts that have erupted as Shiite Iran attempted to export its revolution to Sunni Arab lands. And they see radical elements in Iran as keeping these militant Sunni groups alive -- in a cynical Faustian bargain -- even though Iran is Shia. The Sunni-led Saudi Arabia and the Shia Iran each have intense difficulties. This conflict is largely fueled by the battles between Shiite Iran and its Sunni neighbors, and it will only resolve via a grand bargain between Western powers and Iran. Moreover, its conflict with Israel had made Iran popular among some Arab societies, regardless of whether they are Sunni or Shiite. Here's a short primer on the schism between the sects: People inside Iran, especially in the last two decades have realised how much more religious and conservative Iranian Sunnis are compared to their Shi'ite countrymen. The threat of militant extremism among Iran’s Sunnis is being taken very seriously in Tehran. [158] Following the 2005 elections, much of the leadership of Iran has been described as more "staunchly committed to core Shia values" and lacking Ayatollah Khomeini's commitment to Shia–Sunni unity. This would result in Afghanistan becoming a Sunni versus Shia war zone, drawing in forces and militias backed by Iran, Saudi Arabia, and other Gulf powers. Initially, Iran was a Sunni majority until 1500 when Shah Ismail I conquered Iran and forced a conversion of Sunni Muslims to Shia Islam with several Sunnis murdered in … Sunni- Shi’ite tensions, whilst entrenched for centuries, certainly came to a head following the pro- Shi’ite revolution in Iran that sought to spread its message across the Arab world, threatening the domestic security of the Sunni Baath party. The invasion of Iraq instigated by George Bush and Tony Blair in 2003 was the second big factor in the deterioration of Sunni-Shia relations. By Anchal Vohra Another problem with the Iranian policy of … Ties cut with Qatar Unraveling the Qatar crisis So the maps below show the estimated distribution of the Sunni and Shia populations within a percentage range of the total population. Sunni Muslims are the second largest is iran sunni or shia at over 10 % of Muslims Sunni-dominated! “ Sunni ” low oil price is a Shia Muslim majority state in! 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