Today is Monday; 29th of the Iranian month of Shahrivar 1395 solar hijri; corresponding to 17th of the Islamic month of Zi’l-Hijjah 1437 lunar hijri; and September 19, 2016, of the Christian Gregorian Calendar.

1382 solar years ago, on this day in 634 AD, Damascus, fell to the Arab Muslims, only seven years after the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius’ much trumpeted triumph in Syria and Upper Mesopotamia over the Sassanid Empire in the 26-year long final and most bloody round of the Roman-Persian Wars that were being fought intermittently for the past 720 years since 92 BC. Heraclius’ loss of Syria to the Muslims, who subsequently overran the Iranian capital, Ctesiphon in Iraq, meant the curtain had come down on four centuries of Byzantine-Sassanid rivalry for regional supremacy, as new players took charge of the battlegrounds of Syria and Mesopotamia (Iraq) that would now see some of the most crucial battles in Islamic history.

1150 solar years ago, on this day in 866 AD, Byzantine Emperor, Leo VI, was born. Of doubtful paternity, since his mother was the mistress of Emperor Michael III and at the same time the wife of the future Emperor Basil the Macedonian, he succeeded to the throne on the latter's death and ruled for 26 years till his own death in 912. His reign saw the loss of more territory to the Muslims in both Sicily and in Asia Minor, as well as islands in the Aegean Sea. The greatest setback for him was in 904, when the Greek Muslim admiral, Raseq al-Wardami, sailing from Syria, took control of Thessalonica, the second largest city of the Byzantium Empire. After a week's stay, during which he seized some 60 ships and forced the Christians to free over 4,000 Muslim prisoners, Raseq sailed back to the Levant. Born as a Christian and named Leo by his parents, Raseq was an officer in the Byzantine navy, before discovering the truth of Islam and joining the Muslims. Also known as Ghulam Zurafa, three years later in 907, he had sailed up the Dardanelles and besieged Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire, much to the horror of Emperor Leo VI. In May 912, just before the humiliated Leo VI died, Raseq al-Wardami and his fellow Greek Muslim admiral, Damian of Tarsus, known by his Muslim name, Ghulam Yazman, decisively defeated the Byzantine admiral, Himerios, off the island of Chios in the Aegean Sea, in retaliation for an attack by Christians on the Muslims of Cyprus.

1134 lunar years ago, in 303 AH, Ali ibn Abdullah titled Saif od-Dowla (Sword of the State), the founder of the Hamdanid emirate of Aleppo which included northern Syria and western parts of Iraq, was born in Iraq to Abdullah Abi’l-Hayja, the ruler of Mosul. He was the younger brother of Hassan, titled Naser od-Dowla, the ruler of Mosul, and belonged to the Banu Taghlib Arab tribe. The family followed the school of the Prophet's Ahl al-Bayt and was famous for its patronage of scholars. Saif od-Dowla is famous for his military exploits against the Byzantine Empire, and is considered the epitome of the Islamic-Arab chivalrous ideal. He began his career as ruler of Waset in central Iraq and became involved in the power struggles of the Abbasid caliph, who ruled from nearby Baghdad. He realized that greater potential lay to the west, in Syria, then under the dominion of the Ikhshidid Turkic dynasty, which ruled Egypt as well. With the support of the local Banu Kilab tribe, he captured Aleppo and soon took Damascus. He then marched toward Egypt and took Ramla, but was unable to make further progress. His most important concern was with the Byzantine Empire. Almost every year he would mount raids into Asia Minor (western Turkey), and won a great victory near Germanikeia, killing Patrikios Leo Maleinos. He surrounded himself with prominent intellectual figures such as the celebrated Iranian-Islamic philosopher, Abu Nasr al-Farabi, and noted poets, including al-Mutanabbi and Abu Firas Hamdani – the latter was his cousin and brother-in-law and wrote the famous ode “ar-Rumiyaat” while in Byzantine captivity. Saif od-Dowla himself was a poet, and his delicate poem on the rainbow shows high artistic ability.

949 lunar years ago, on this day in 488 AH, the famous Spanish Muslim scholar, Mohammad Ibn Nasr al-Andalusi al-Humaydi, passed away in Baghdad at the age of 68. Born on the Mediterranean island of Majorca in a family from Cordoba (Qurtuba), he was a student of Ibn Abd al-Barr and later of Ibn Hazm, under whose influence he adopted the Zahirite School of jurisprudence, founded by Dawoud ibn Khalaf az-Zahiri of Isfahan – a school that was widespread among Sunni Muslims in Iran, Iraq, Syria, North Africa and Spain before the Turkic rulers forcibly replaced it with the Hanafi School (also founded by an Iranian, Abu Hanifa, the son of a Zoroastrian convert to Islam from Kabul). Due to persecution of Zahirites in Spain by the Malikites, Humaydi left his homeland for good. Initially, he went to Mecca to perform the Hajj, before traveling to Tunisia, Egypt, Syria and finally settling in Iraq. An outstanding scholar in the fields of hadith, history, Arabic grammar and lexicography, he wrote several books. Among his works is the biography of the notables of Islamic Spain, entitled “Jadhwat al-Muqtabis”, which is a mine of information on scholars who frequently travelled between the furthest points of the Islamic east and the west, such as the Iranian polymath, Ziryab who flourished at Cordoba, at a time when Christian Europe was in the Dark Ages. Humaydi also wrote “at-Tafsir al-Ghareeb ma fi as-Sahihayn”, which is a linguistic commentary on the two “Sahihs” (canonical works of Sunni Muslims) of the Iranian hadith compilers, Mohammad bin Ismail Bukhari and Muslim Naishapuri.

660 solar years ago, on this day in 1356 AD, the Battle of Poitiers occurred during the “Hundred Years War” in Europe when an English army under the command of Edward the Black Prince defeated a French army and captured the French king, John II.

658 lunar years ago, on this day in 779 AH, Mujahid Shah, the 3rd ruler of the Bahmani Sultanate of the Deccan (southern India) was assassinated at the age of 22 in his capital Gulbarga after a rule of only three years, by his jealous uncle, Daud Shah, who in turn was killed a month later on the orders of his niece Rouh Parwar Agha (sister of the deceased Mujahid Shah) and replaced by her younger brother, Mohammad Shah II. The court language of the Bahmanis, who traced their origin to the pre-Islamic Iranian hero Bahman, was Persian, and they promoted Iranian culture, art and architecture.

279 solar years ago, on this day in 1737 AD, a devastating cycle in India’s Bay of Bengal destroyed some 2,000 ships and other vessels. It was estimated that more than 30,000 people died in the densely populated area called the Sundarbans in what is now Bangladesh and the Indian state of Bengal.

177 solar years ago, on this day in 1839 AD, British businessman, Quaker, social reformer and chocolate manufacturer, George Cadbury, was born in Birmingham. In 1856, at age 21, he joined his father's chocolate business, with his elder brother, Richard, who had joined in 1850. Their father retired in April 1861 due to failing health, and they took over his declining enterprise and built it into the highly prosperous Cadbury Brothers cocoa-and chocolate-manufacturing firm. George was perhaps more important for his improvements in working conditions and for his successful experiments with a new cocoa bean processing technique. The new pure unadulterated Cadbury's cocoa essence was heralded as a major breakthrough and it resulted in the passing of the Adulteration of Foods Acts in 1872 and 1875. George Cadbury died in 1922. This British company was bought in 2010 by the American Mondelez International (originally Kraft Foods), which is facing strong criticism for "secretly" rolling out a new "cheap-tasting" Creme Egg. It has also replaced the hugely popular Cadbury's Dairy Milk shell with one made from a cocoa mix chocolate.

146 solar years ago, on this day in 1870 AD, during the Franco-Prussian War, the Siege of Paris began, resulting in the surrender of Paris and a decisive Prussian victory on January 28, 1871.

41 lunar years ago, on this day in 1396 AH, Ayatollah Aqa Rahim Arbab Isfahani passed away in his hometown Isfahan at the age of 99 years. He was a student of leading ulema of the Isfahan seminary such as Abu’l-Ma’ali Kalbasi, Akhund Mullah Mohammad Kashi, and the Gnostic, Mirza Jahangir Khan Qashqai. He was a fellow student with Grand Ayatollah Seyyed Hussain Boroujerdi.

27 lunar years ago, on this day in 1410 AH, the great scholar, Ayatollah Seyyed Morteza Ferouzabadi, passed away at the age of 81. Born in holy Najaf, he studied under such leading scholars as Seyyed Abu’l-Hassan Isfahani and Seyyed Ali Qazi Tabatabai. An avid researcher who wrote several books, his most important work is titled “Faza’el al-Khamsa min as-Sihah as-Sitta”. As the title suggests, in this authoritative 3-volume book, he has extracted from the six canonical Sunni hadith books the unsurpassable merits of the Five Peerless Personalities, that is, Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), Imam Ali (AS), Hazrat Fatema Zahra (SA), Imam Hasan (AS) and Imam Husain (AS). Another of his well-researched work is titled “as-Saba’ min as-Salaf” on the dubious characteristics of seven of the leading Salaf or early converts, who are mistakenly revered by certain Muslim sects despite having caused the greatest sedition in Islam.

25 solar years ago, on this day in 1991 AD, the US imposed a military pact on the Persian Gulf emirate of Kuwait, for stationing troops and equipment on the claim of preventing a repetition of Iraq's military aggression and occupation that had ended some six months ago. A year later, the former colonial power, Britain, followed by France also imposed similar pacts on Kuwait, as part of the plot to militarize the Persian Gulf. In the next few years, the US, along with Britain and France, imposed similar military pacts on Bahrain, Qatar, Oman, and the United Arab Emirates, in order to seize billions of petro-dollars by supplying obsolete military hardware which the Arab states cannot use. These pacts have led to a rise in the unwanted military presence of foreign powers and fueled insecurity in the Persian Gulf.

22 solar years ago, on this day in 1994 AD, 20,000 US troops invaded and occupied Haiti in the Caribbean Sea on the pretext of reinstatement of President Jean Bertrand Aristide, three years after the coup staged by General Raoul Cedras to seize power. Aristide, who had sought refuge in the US, was reinstated in October 1994. The real intention of the US was control of Haiti, and a decade later, Washington, by openly supporting rioters, kidnapped Aristide from the presidential palace and replaced him with another president. The recurring aggressions of the US on Haiti are a clear example of violation of international rules and regulations and military interference in the affairs of other countries.

14 solar years ago, on this day in 2002 AD, the prominent jurisprudent, Ayatollah Seyyed Mohammad Ali Movahhed Abtahi, passed away at the age of 72. Born in Isfahan, at the tender age of 15 years he enrolled at the Qom seminary and studied under prominent ulema, such as Grand Ayatollah Seyyed Hussain Boroujerdi, Grand Ayatollah Seyyed Mohammad Reza Golpayegani and the famous exegete of the holy Qur’an, Allamah Seyyed Mohammad Hussain Tabatabaie. At the age of 24 he left for the holy Najaf seminary in Iraq, where he spent twenty years, studying under the famous Grand Ayatollahs Seyyed Mohsin al-Hakim, and Seyyed Abu’l-Qasim Khoei, and reaching the status of Ijtihad. On his return to Iran he engaged himself in teaching, research and writing of books at the Qom seminary. He wrote over a hundred books and treaties on a wide variety of Islamic sciences, including the 5-volume “Tahdhib al-Maqal fi Sharh Rejal”, the 10-volume “Akhbar ar-Ruwwaat”, the 4-volume “Osoul-e Fiqh”, and the 2-volume “al-Me’raj” on Prophet Mohammad’s (SAWA) Ascension to the highest point in the heaven and back to Planet Earth in a fraction of the night.    

9 solar years ago, on this day in 2007 AD, Iranian air force pilots made successful test flights in two of Iran's new domestically manufactured fighter jet. The “Saeqeh” jet is a new generation of the “Azarakhsh” class of fighter planes. Azarakhsh and Saeqeh mean lightening in Persian and Arabic respectively.

10 solar years ago, on this day in 2006 AD, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in his address to the UN General Assembly for the second consecutive year, criticized the hegemonic policies of the US in Iraq and Lebanon. He said Washington was abusing its power in the UN Security Council to punish others while protecting its own interests and allies. The American press widely covered his speech, while President George Bush again shied away from accepting his Iranian counterpart’s proposal for a televised debate on major international issues.

AS/SS