The Sunni-Shite Conflict Analysis

Often called “The Crossroads of the World”, the Middle East stands between three continents: Asia, Africa, and Europe. Over thousands of years, migrating traders and conquerors crossed this region and spread the ideas, inventions, and achievements of many civilizations. It is an incredibly important part of the world with rich history, important resources, and deep religious and cultural traditions. However, in the past decades up to today, the Middle East has been consumed by conflict and chaos. Although different circumstances surround each issue, religion, terrorism, disputes over the control of natural resources, and weak governance primarily allow conflict to persist in the Middle East.

With a death toll in the hundred of thousands, and millions displaced, the Syrian civil war has become a violent mark on the world’s history. What started as a peaceful protest has spread over five years, has evolved into a war with a tyrannical government, a clashing rebellion, and terrorism fighting either side. But what is it that really fuels the immense amount of violence? It can be narrowed down to four groups that are obvious. The government and the rebels are the forerunners in violence in the war, sure, but they aren’t the only ones. There are the terrorist groups, with skewed views to support the destruction of people and things around them, and in itself the stark difference of the religions and ethnicities of Syria. Who causes

Many non-Muslims believe the cause of the Shi’ite and Sunni violence originated from their religious differences. However the differences in tradition, education, law, and religious practices are a small factor in this escalating problem. The core of their faith is practically identical. Both factions believe that Muhammad, their prophet, was the messenger of Allah. They also believe that all Muslims must abide by Muhammad’s teachings as outlined in their

Syria’s civil war is the worst humanitarian crisis of modern time. The “Syrian Civil war Began in March of 2011, between rebel brigades and government force; economy and infrastructure is destroyed” (Library, 2016). “Divisions between secular and religious fighters, and between ethnic groups, continue to complicate the politics of the conflict” (Corps, 2016). Additionally, the Syrian civil war has taken a significant

In the year 632, the Islamic faith split into two sects (branches) that would never re-unite. The of the branches are called Shia , and the other Sunni. Shia muslims thought that after the prophet Muhammad died, someone from his family should be the next leader of Islam. They favored Ali, Muhammad's son-in-law. Sunni muslims believe that the role should fall to the person who was deemed by the elite of the community to be best able to lead. And it was that political decision that began the Sunni-Shia split. The Sunnis succeeded and chose their successor to be the first caliph. Ali was to be the fourth caliph until conflict broke out and the two before him were killed, leading to civil war. This conflict eventually subsided and the two branches lived peacefully for centuries until years ago when a terrorist group reignited the dead war.

While numerous countries remain established under the ideology of Islamic fundamentalism currently, the religious conflicts between differentiating Islamic sects has initiated massive political and religious warfare. The conflicts between Shia and Sunni Muslims have dates back to the 7th century, after the death of Prophet Muhammad. This great divide still exists today, according to a 2009 study by Pew Research Center, between 10-13% of the Muslims are Shia, while 87-90% are Sunni Muslims, comprising of over 1.5 billion Muslims worldwide. While Islamic extremist may be viewed as separate from the mainstream Islamic groups, Muslim extremist groups have evolved alongside the Shia and Sunni sects. “Kharijites” were extreme doctrines which adopted

In history, there have been different types of belief systems, some polytheistic, some monotheistic. These belief systems either showed to rise in power and stayed there or plummet quickly, all these belief systems had some type of law and/or order, whether codified or not. Islam is the largest religion in the world, with over one billion followers. Islam means "surrender" and Muslim means "anyone or anything that surrenders itself to the true will of God". Islam is a monotheistic religion, although, it can be also consider polytheistic, just all those gods connected to one god.

Syria is currently all over the news regarding what many have to come to see as a civil war. A term like civil war needs to identify the players and the reasons for the war. In this case the players are being identified as pro government or antigovernment with a Sunni or Shia overtone. Sunni and Shia are the two major sects of Islam and both have a historical based conflict going back to the death of the Prophet Muhammad and how Muslims should be governed. This conflict has caused tensions and violence to flare up throughout Islamic history. This conflict has carried into modern times and has becoming a rallying point for Muslim people calling for change with their government and across the Middle Eastern region. The

While the aftermath of World War II is often referred to as one of the primary creators of deep rooted turmoil in the Middle East region, the effects of the Cold War and the United States often over-zealous battle against communism is just as much a contributor if not more. The Arab world and the Middle East region were clearly going through quite an extraordinary period throughout World War II and its conclusion, primarily with the creation of most of the states we recognize today and struggling with the continuation of colonialism. These factors set the stage for the emergence of strong nationalist sentiments and Pan-Arab movements across the Middle East. Unfortunately, and much to the detriment of the region, the leaders of these young

Disagreement between Shias and Sunni have been the most important splits in Islamic religion, which are ongoing problems since the 7th century to present-day, conflict in Islamic history has initiated blood spills from generations to generations and is still taking life’s while differences in social and equal opportunities that have taken deep roots in the minds of future leaders.

The historic background of the Sunni -Shia lies in the schism that occurred when the Islamic prophet Mohammed died in the 632, leading to a dispute over succession to Mohammed as a caliph of the Islamic community spread across various parts of the world, which led to the battel of Safin. The dispute intensified greatly after the battle of Karbala, in which Hussein ibn ail and his household were killed by the ruling Umayyad caliph Yazidi, and the outcry for revenge divided the early Islamic community. Today, there are differences in religious practice, traditions, and customs, often related to jurisprudence. Although all Muslims groups consider the Quran to be divine, Sunni and Shia have different opinions on hadith.

To many, religion is seen as a critical component in living life. One of the largest religions with its millions of adherents is Islam. Mainly known for its peaceful interpretation of the world, it is currently having sectarian culture conflict between the two sects Sunni and Shiites. Sunni, the biggest sect of Islam, and Shiites, the minority sect, have been in disagreement for many centuries. Because of the similarities witnessed in both cultures, it seems odds that these two sects would be involved in a long-time feud over power and righteousness over Islam.

that religion and politics have a long history in the Middle East does not mean that religion is always, or even most of the time, a crucial factor driving political conflicts. Most of the politics of the Middle East have been viewed by those inside and outside the region as driven by religious difference. From the Arab-Israeli conflict to the Iranian revolution to the emergence of

One of the most famous religious splits in human history is the well known Sunni-Shia split. The Sunni-Shia split is highly divisive throughout the world, and predominantly in the Middle East. These sects share similarities, such as they all believe that Allah is the one true god, and Muhammad is his messenger. They also believe in the same five religious pillars that Muslims follow. Although these sects are very similar, there is one big schismatic difference that separates the two. This difference lies with the question of: “Who is the rightful successor of the Prophet Muhammad?” Through this 1,400 year conflict Most sunnis believe that Abu Bakr the Prophet 's closest companion is the true successor. In contrast most Shias believe that Ali, who was the prophet 's cousin and son in law is the true successor. Abu bakr was the rightful heir to lead Muslims after the Prophet’s death. Abu Bakr was arguably his closest confidant throughout their lives, and Abu Bakr understood the Messenger teachings the best. It can also be argued that that Ali would be the fourth caliph instead of the first because choosing a successor to the Prophet based on bloodline could be seen as committing idolatry according to Islamic teaching.

Since many religions have started in the Middle East, it has become the center for erupting conflicts. For instance, the Palestinian-Israeli conflict has been in the news for many reasons. Both groups want control of the God given land that they both claim is theirs, according to God, and what had happened in the past. The result of the conflict is religious terrorism (PBS, 1). Continuing, some Middle Eastern politics have been in conflict, even dividing communities of the