Today is Thursday; 22nd of the Iranian month of Farvardin 1398 solar hijri; corresponding to 5th of the Islamic month of Sha’ban 1440 lunar hijri; and April 11, 2019, of the Christian Gregorian Calendar.

1528 solar years ago, on this day in 491 AD, palace official Flavius Anastasius was placed on the throne of Byzantine or Eastern Roman Empire, as Emperor Anastasius I, by the deceased Emperor Zeno’s widow, Aelia Ariadne (daughter of Emperor Leo I), who subsequently married him to grant legitimacy to his rule. A person with one eye black and one eye blue that earned him the nickname “Dicorus” or the "Two-Pupiled", a decade later he started war against Iran’s Sassanid Empire in what is now south-central Turkey. Known as the Anastasian War, the 4-year seesaw struggle fought from 502 to 506, was the first major conflict between the two superpowers since the Peace Treaty of 442, and would be prelude to a long series of destructive wars over the next century that would result in the weakening of both the empires and their conquest by Arab Muslim armies with the rise of Islam. The cause of war was the demand by Qobad I, the 19^th Sassanid Emperor, for money to pay his debts to the Hephthalites (eastern Iranian tribes and ancestors of Pashtuns of Afghanistan-Pakistan). The situation between Rome and Iran was also exacerbated by changes in the flow of the Tigris in lower Mesopotamia (Iraq), sparking famines and flood. When Anastasius refused to pay, Qobad seized the city of Theodosiopolis, and then captured Amida (Diyarbakr in modern Turkey). The year 503 saw more warfare without decisive results: the Romans attempted an unsuccessful siege of Amida while the Iranians invaded Osroene and laid siege to Edessa. In 504 Anastasius gained the upper hand by retaking Amida, which made Qobad to agree to an armistice because of the invasion of Armenia in the Caucasus by the Huns. Fighting, however, continued until late 506 when a treaty was finally agreed and Rome had to make payment to the Iranians. Although no large-scale conflict took place during the rest of Anastasius's reign, the building of Roman defenses in Anatolia became a lasting source of controversy with the Persians, who called it violation of the Treaty of 422, by which both empires had agreed not to establish new fortifications in the frontier zone.

1402 lunar years ago, on this day in 38 AH, Imam Ali ibn al-Husain Zain al-Abedin (AS), the 4th Infallible Successor of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), was born in Medina. As a 23-year old youth, he was present in Karbala when history's most bloodcurdling tragedy took place, but could not take part in the combat because of being bedridden due to high fever. It was the Will of God that he should survive and wage a unique Jihad whose course traversed the courts of the tyrants in Kufa and Damascus. He triumphed in captivity by shaking to its very foundations the illegal caliphate of Yazid through a series of brilliant sermons that forced the tyrant to release the noble Ahl al-Bayt. His lasting legacy for humanity are his supplications to God that range from purification of spirit and self-reform to social and political issues, as well as scientific facts such as the weight of light – factors which were unthinkable in those days. The “Sahifat-as-Sajjadiyya” is a firm testimony in this regard as well as the “Risalat-al-Hoqouq” – a treatise that contains details of each and every right and more comprehensive than the UN Charter of Rights.

1126 lunar years ago, on this day in 313 AH, the famous Iranian Islamic physician and chemist, Mohammad ibn Zakariyah Razi, passed away at the age of 62. Born in the city of Rayy, he initially followed his father's profession of a goldsmith, before turning to chemistry in addition to honing his skills in other sciences, such as medicine, geometry, logic, and philosophy. He wrote almost 250 works in different scientific fields, including “al-Hawi”, “al-Mansouri”, and “Sayrat al-Falsafiyah”.

805 solar years ago, on this day in 1214 AD, English philosopher and Franciscan friar, Roger Bacon, was born. His access to Latin translations of the Arabic works of Islamic scholars enlightened his mind. He was greatly influenced in the field of optics by the monumental "Kitab al-Manazer" of Abul-Hassan Ibn al-Haytham (Alhazen). The impact of al-Kindi (Alkindus) is also evident in his writings. Moreover, Bacon's investigations of the properties of the magnifying glass show the clear influence of the Iranian Islamic scientist Ibn Sahl's research in dioptrics. His works also indicate his familiarity with the books "Kitab ad‐Dalalaat ala'l‐Ittesalaat wa‐Qiranaat al‐Kawakeb"(Book of Indications of the Planetary Conjunctions), written by the Iranian Islamic astronomer, Abu-Ma'shar Ja'far ibn Mohammad al-Balkhi.

768 solar years ago, on this day in 1241 AD, Batu Khan, grandson of the bloodthirsty Buddhist Mongol conqueror, defeated King Bela IV of Hungary at the Battle of Muhi, laying the land waste and massacring at least 20 percent of the Christian population. Batu was the founder of the vast Golden Horde Empire or the Qipchaq Khanate that spanned most of the central parts of Eurasia for 250 years. In 1313, with the accession of Uzbeg Khan to the throne, the Golden Horde officially adopted Islam and contributed to the spread and development of Islamic religion and culture.

264 solar years ago, on this day in 1755 AD, English physician and paleontologist, James Parkinson, was born. In 1805, he wrote a monograph “Observations on the Nature and Cure of Gout”. He was the first European to recognize a burst appendix as a cause of death. In his Essay on the Shaking Palsy in 1817, he described the neuromuscular disease which is now known by his name as “Parkinson's Disease”. The symptoms of this disease are a generalized slowness of movement, a tremor or slight shaking on one side of the body when at rest, some stiffness of the limbs, and problems of gait or balance.

197 lunar years ago, on this day in 1243 AH, following Qajarid Iran's defeat in the second series of battles in the Caucasus with expansionist Russia, the Turkmenchai Treaty was imposed on Fath Ali Shah with the mediation of the British colonial officials, on the threat that failure to accept will result in the march of Russian troops upon Tehran. As per this one-sided treaty, Iran handed over to Russia, the Erivan khanate or most of present-day central Armenia, the Nakhchivan khanate, which is the present-day Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic of Azerbaijan, the Talish khanate, the Ordubad and Mughan regions of what is now the Republic of Azerbaijan, in addition to all lands seized by Russia some fifteen years earlier, such as Georgia, Daghestan and other parts of the Caucasus. It is to be recalled that initially these battles, led by crown prince, Abbas Mirza, were in Iran's favour but lack of support from Tehran resulted in disastrous defeats. In the aftermath of the war and signing of the humiliating treaty, anti-Russian sentiments became rampant in Iran, and on February 11, 1829, angry people stormed the Russian embassy in Tehran and killed almost everyone inside including the newly appointed ambassador, Alexander Griboyedov, who was part of the team that drafted the Turkmenchai Treaty.

160 solar years ago, on this day in 1859 AD, a chilling machine was invented by French industrialist and chemist, Ferdinand Carre, for preservation of food and medicine, especially in warm regions, leading to eventual invention of the refrigerator.

40 solar years ago, on this day in 1979 AD, deposed Ugandan dictator Idi Amin was given asylum in Saudi Arabia despite the fact that he was a brutal murderer and cannibal. Saudi Arabia is notorious for its support for dictators, such as its giving of asylum to Tunisia’s Zain al-Abedin bin Ali, who was toppled in 2011.

37 solar years ago, on this day in 1982 AD, during the 8-year war imposed on Iran by the US through Saddam of Iraq’s repressive Ba’th minority regime, intelligence personnel nipped in the bud a coup attempt by hypocrites and elements of the monarchic regime that had infiltrated some government apparatuses and intended to assassinate leading officials, as part of an American plot to overthrow the Islamic Republic system.

34 solar years ago, on this day in 1985 AD, Anvar Khoja’s 40-year long communist dictatorial rule over Muslim majority Albania ended with his death at the age of 77. Born in a family following the Bektashi Sufi Order founded in 13^th century Khorasan by Bektash Vali, an adherent of the Ahl al-Bayt of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), in his youth he studied in Italy and France, before travelling all over Europe and the US. He turned into a communist and on return to Albania became fierce opponent of the monarchy that had been installed by European powers on separation of Albania from the Ottoman Empire. He resisted the Fascist Italian occupation of his homeland, and became the First Secretary of the Party of Labour of Albania. He was chairman of the Democratic Front of Albania and commander-in-chief of the armed forces from 1944 until his death. His anti-religious rule was characterized by the elimination of the opposition, prolific use of the death penalty or long prison terms of his political opponents and evictions from homes. He used Stalinist methods to destroy his associates who threatened his power. During his rule, Albania became industrialized and saw rapid economic growth, as well as unprecedented progress in the areas of education and health. Khoja’s government was characterized by his adherence to anti-revisionist Marxism–Leninism from the mid-1970s onwards. He broke away from Maoism in 1976, and it was only after his death that communism ended in Albania and religion, especially Islam, made a gradual return.

22 solar years ago, on this day in 1997 AD, a day after the unjust verdict of a local German court, under influence of the illegal Zionist entity against the Islamic Republic of Iran’s high-ranking officials, member states of the European Union recalled their ambassadors from Tehran. Known as the Mykonos Case after a Greek restaurant of the same name in Berlin where an Iranian Kurd was mysteriously killed, the kangaroo court was proof of the sham trial in a futile bid to pressure Iran. In response to EU’s highly politicized decision, Iran dismissed as baseless the allegations and claims of the German court, recalling its ambassadors from EU member states. As Islamic Iran refused to budge from its principled position, the EU ambassadors gradually returned to Tehran.

AS/SS