Today is Friday; 5th of the Iranian month of Azar 1395 solar hijri; corresponding to 25th of the Islamic month of Safar 1438 lunar hijri; and November 25, 2016, of the Christian Gregorian Calendar.

1238 lunar years ago, on this day in 230 AH, the Spanish Muslims led by their general of Iranian origin, Mohammad Ibn Rustum crushingly defeated the Viking marauders who made an attempt to invade Andalusian coasts in a battle near the Islamic city of Ishbiliya, (called Seville today). He succeeded in cutting off the Viking invaders from their ships, and captured four of their vessels laden with booty. Many of the attackers were captured while the rest of them fled. The descendents of the captured Vikings settled in Islamic Spain, embraced the truth of Islam, and became cattle ranchers and makers of excellent cheese.

1082 lunar years ago, on this day in 356 AH, Saif od-Dowla, the Hamdanid ruler of Aleppo and most of Syria, passed away. Named Ali, he was the son of Abdullah bin Hamdan, and was a staunch follower of Prophet Mohammad’s (SAWA) Ahl al-Bayt. He was the younger brother of Nasser od-Dowla the Emir of Mosul. He distinguished himself in battles against the Byzantines and could be called the Warden of the Marches of the Islamic frontier of those days by checking the bid by the Christians to plunder Syria. Saif od-Dowla was a man of letters and surrounded himself with prominent intellectual figures, notably the great Arabic poets, al-Mutanabbi and Abu Firas Hamdani, as well as the noted Iranian Islamic philosopher Abu Nasr Farabi. Saif od-Dowla himself was a poet; his delicate short poem on the rainbow shows high artistic ability.

839 solar years ago, on this day in 1177 AD, the Battle of Montgisard led to the defeat of the Kurdish ruler of Egypt-Syria, Salah od-Din Ayyoubi, at the hands of the 16-year-old leprosy-stricken King Baldwin IV of the illegal Latin kingdom of Jerusalem. Salah od-Din was completely routed, suffered massive casualties, and managed to flee to safety only with a fraction of his army. Ten years later in 1187, after assembling a large multi-ethnic Muslim army that included Khorasani sappers from Iran, he managed to decisively defeat the Crusaders, end the 88-year illegal existence of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem, and liberate the Islamic holy city of Bayt al-Moqaddas. 

525 solar years ago, on this day in 1491 AD, a huge Christian mercenary force assembled from all over Europe under the command of King Ferdinand of Aragon and Queen Isabel of Castile, started its siege of Granada (Gharnata), the last Muslim stronghold in Spain, during the ten-year war against the Nasrid Dynasty. On January 2, 1492, Amir Mohammad XII was tricked into surrendering, because of treason among his officials, coupled with the infighting that prevented the two most powerful Muslim empires of the region – the Mamluks of Egypt and the Ottomans – from sending any relief force to the aid of Spanish Muslims. About 200,000 Spanish Muslims were forced to migrate from their homeland to North Africa after the fall of Granada that ended 8 centuries of the glorious Muslim civilization in Spain.

454 solar years ago, on this day in 1562 AD, Spanish playwright, poet and novelist, Felix Lope de Vega, was born in Madrid. A key figure in the Spanish Golden Century of Baroque literature, his reputation in the world of Spanish literature is second only to that of Miguel de Cervantes, while the sheer volume of his literary output is unequalled.

349 solar years ago, on this day in 1667 AD, a deadly earthquake rocked the city of Shemakha in the Caucasus in Azarbaijan (122 km east southwest of Baku), in the Shirvan Khanate of the northwestern region of Iran’s Safavid Empire killing at least 80,000 people.

177 solar years ago, on this day in 1839 AD, a cyclone slammed the southeastern coast of India with high winds and a 40-foot storm surge, destroying the port city of Coringa (which has never been completely rebuilt). The storm wave swept inland, taking with it 20,000 boats and ships and thousands of people. An estimated 300,000 deaths resulted from the disaster in the then thriving port, which is now a tiny village in the East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh. Earlier in 1789, a cyclone had hit the same port city, killing at least 20,000 people.

140 solar years ago, on this day in 1876 AD, in revenge for their defeat at the Battle of the Little Bighorn five months earlier, the United States troops savagely sacked the sleeping Cheyenne village of Dull Knife at the headwaters of the Powder River, inflicting killing and plundering unarmed Amerindian men, women, and children. The Little Bighorn River in eastern Montana Territory was the most prominent action of the Great Sioux War of 1876. It was an overwhelming victory for the Lakota, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes, which in defence of their homeland annihilated the US 7^th Cavalry, including a force of 700 well-armed led by General George Armstrong Custer. The US has a bleak and bloody record of ethnic cleansing of the native Amerindian population.

136 solar years ago, on this day in 1880 AD, the root cause of Malaria was discovered by French physician, Charles Laveran. With this discovery, he paved the way for uprooting this ailment. Dr. Laveran was awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1907.

98 solar years ago, on this day in 1918 AD, following the defeat of German and Austro-Hungarian Empires, Poland re-emerged as a nation state in Europe after 123 years of occupation and division amongst the great neighbouring powers. In World War II, Poland was once again occupied by Germany, and after the end of Nazi domination in 1945 it went under the influence of the Soviet Union. In 1990, with the collapse of communism, it became an independent country. Poland covers an area of 312683 sq km and is located in Eastern Europe. It shares borders with the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany, Lithuania, Belarus, and Ukraine. Its capital is Warsaw.

82 solar years ago, on this day in 1934 AD, veteran Iranian cinema actor, Jamshid Mashayekhi, was born. In 1957, he began professional acting on stage and his first feature film role was “Brick and Mirror” in 1965. After a four-year break, he acted in “The Cow” (1969) and later the same year in “Qaysar”. Today, Mashayekhi commonly appears as an elderly grandfather because of his white hair and charismatic face and figure. He received a best performance award for “The Grandfather” in 1985 from the First Festival of Non-aligned Countries in North Korea. He has endeared himself to the Iranian masses through his excellent acting the TV series “Hezar Dastan” and “Kamal ol-Molk”, on the famous Iranian master painter of the last century.

74 solar years ago, on this day in 1942 AD, the scholar and controversial politician, Mohammad Ali Foroughi titled Zaka ol-Molk, died at the age of 65. Born in Tehran into a family of Isfahani merchants, whose ancestors were said to be Jews from Baghdad who converted to Islam, he was the son of Mohammad-Hussain Khan Zaka ol-Molk – a writer, poet, translator and official of the Qajarid era. Foroughi learnt French and English, and pursued medical studies at the Dar al-Fonoun until his interests shifted to literature and philosophy. In 1907 on his father’s death, he became the Dean of the College of Political Sciences. In 1909, he entered politics as a member of Majlis (Parliament). He subsequently became speaker of the house and later minister in several cabinets as well as prime minister three times during the Qajarid era. He betrayed the Qajars by siding with the British in bringing to power the Pahlavi regime, and when Reza Khan was declared the Shah, Foroughi became the acting prime minister. Later also he was appointed prime minister by Reza Khan but removed in 1935. Nonetheless, Foroughi who was a freemason with links to the secret Zionist network, continued to serve the regime despite its blatant misdeeds and oppression of the Iranian people. The books he wrote include: “History of Ancient Iran”, “Study of European Philosophy”, and “Sassanid History”.

41 solar years ago, on this day in 1975 AD, Suriname in South America, announced complete independence from Holland after having gained autonomy in 1954. Suriname was occupied by the British towards the end of the 16th century, and in early 17th century it was exchanged with Holland for several Dutch possessions in North America. Suriname is a Republic with a coastline on the Atlantic Ocean. It shares borders with Brazil, Guyana, and French Guiana. Over 30 percent of the population is Muslim.

38 solar years ago, on this day in 1978 AD, prominent Iranian religious leader, Ayatollah Seyyed Mohammad Kashani, passed away at the age of 85. He was born in an academic and virtuous family in the city of Kashan. Following the completion of preliminary studies in Kashan and Isfahan, he went to Iraq for higher studies at the prestigious seminary of holy Najaf.

38 solar years ago, on this day in 1978 AD, religious leaders and the masses seeking to topple the British-installed and US-backed Shah, called a general strike that paralyzed the country.

37 solar years ago, on this day in 1979 AD, as per a decree issued by the Father of the Islamic Revolution, Imam Khomeini (RA) for formation of the twenty million-strong army, the Basij Mobilization Force was founded. A popular body which is comprised of faithful, selfless, and hardworking forces has played a crucial role in all scenes of the Islamic Revolution, especially during the 8-year Holy Defence of the Iranian nation against the US-ordered invasion by Saddam’s regime. The Basij is highly active in the social, cultural, industrial, and defence arenas of Islamic Iran. The Late Imam hailed the Basij as the manifestation of lofty Islamic ethics.

26 solar years ago, on this day in 1990 AD, the Iranian calligrapher, Mir Khani, passed away at the age of 80 years. He learned calligraphy under prominent masters was also a highly capable poet. He has left behind more than sixty books on calligraphy.

13 solar years ago, on this day in 2003 AD, prominent jurisprudent, senior revolutionary figure, Islamic judge, and MP, Ayatollah Mohammed Sadeq Khalkhali, passed away at the age of 77 in the holy city of Qom. Born in the town of Givi in what is now Ardabil Province in northwestern Iran, he entered the Qom seminary and in 1955 emerged as a staunch disciple of the Father of the Islamic Revolution, Imam Khomeini (RA). He became politically active against the despotic regime of the British-installed and US-backed Pahlavi regime, and joined the Fada'iyan-e Islam revolutionary group of Hojjat al-Islam Seyyed Mojtaba Safavi. On 24 February 1979, shortly after the victory of the Islamic Revolution, he was appointed by Imam Khomeini as Head the newly established Revolutionary Courts in order to mete out justice to the corrupt anti-Islamic elements. Ayatollah Khalkhali is famous for ordering the executions of the Shah’s longtime prime minister, Amir Abbas Hoveida, and Nematollah Nassiri, the last head of SAVAK – the notorious terror network of the Pahlavi regime. His resoluteness and sense of justice shattered the backbone of US-supported anti-revolutionaries. He also oversaw the pulling down of a huge and ugly building overshadowing the holy shrine of the Prophet’s venerable descendent, Seyyed Abdul-Azim al-Hassani (AS), in Rayy, which the last Pahlavi ruler had built to house the rotten bones of his father, Reza Khan, who had died in exile in Mauritius. An Islamic seminary was built on this site, and is today a thriving centre for promotion of religious sciences and humanitarian values. After retirement as judge, Ayatollah Sadeq Khalkhali was elected to the Majlis (parliament) for two consecutive 4-year terms as representative of the people of Qom.

AS/ME