Today is Saturday; 2nd of the Iranian month of Ordibehesht 1396 solar hijri; corresponding to 24th of the Islamic month of Rajab 1438 lunar hijri; and April 22, 2017, of the Christian Gregorian Calendar.

1431 lunar years ago, on this day in 7 AH, the impregnable fortress of Qamous in the vast tract of Khaybar, 150 km north of Medina on the road to Syria, was single-handedly captured by the Commander of the Faithful, Imam Ali (AS), who after overcoming in personal combat the fearsome Israelite warlord, Marhab, pulled from its hinges the huge gateway that several Jewish strongmen used to open and close. Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) had to undertake the campaign on learning of the plots and seditions of the ever-rebellious Israelites, who in violation of the accords were contemplating military measures, including raid on Medina, in addition to their funding of pagan Arab tribes to attack Muslims from time to time. The Prophet’s sudden arrival on the scene with some 1,500-odd Muslims caught the estimated 10,000 armed Israelite force off guard, and forced the leaders of various Jewish tribes to agree to pay tribute. Of the forts that resisted, the Muslims forced almost all of them to surrender after several weeks of siege. The principal Israelite fortress of Qamous, however, not just continued to hold out but its defenders drove away with losses the expeditions led by the Prophet’s companions. At last the Prophet said he would be giving the command tomorrow to the person “who loves God and the Prophet and is in turn loved by God and the Prophet; an intrepid attacker (Karrar) who never retreats (Ghayra Farrar).” On the morning the Prophet invoked the famous phrase “Nad-e Aliyyan Mazhar al-Aja’eb” (Call Ali the Manifestation of Wonders). His dear cousin and son-in-law, who because of eye inflammation was not participating in the campaign was brought before him. The Prophet applied his saliva to his eyes, which were miraculously cured. The rest is history, and the Prophet gave fair terms to the Jews after surrender, allowing them to live in peace. It is worth noting that before this campaign the Prophet had received the vast orchard of Fadak as a personal gift without the involvement of Muslims, arms, and hostilities. On God’s command he gave Fadak to his daughter, Hazrat Fatema Zahra (SA), who used to spend its income for the poor and needy, until it was seized from her by the first and second self-styled caliphs.

1337 lunar years ago, on this day in 101 AH, the Omayyad ruler, Omar bin Abdul-Aziz, died due to poisoning of his food after a reign of three years during which he renounced the oppressive and un-Islamic policies of his predecessors. One of his first acts on becoming caliph was to issue a decree to halt the blasphemous cursing of the Commander of the Faithful, Imam Ali (AS), during Friday prayer sermons – a sacrilegious practice begun by the hardcore heathen, Mu’awiyya ibn Abu Sufyan, who through such acts intended to keep the growing neo Muslim population ignorant of the God-given right to rule of Prophet Muhammad’s (SAWA) rightful successor. Omar ibn Abdul-Aziz next returned to the Ahl al-Bayt the large tract of Fadak whose income had now swelled to 40,000 dinars, since this was the property of the Prophet’s daughter, Hazrat Fatema Zahra (SA) from whom the first and second self-styled caliphs had illegally seized. He is also credited with various other reforms like abolition of drinking, forbidding public nudity, and elimination of mixed bathrooms for men and women, which the Godless Omayyad caliphs had initiated. He was succeeded by the ungodly Yazid bin Abdul-Malik, who immediately reversed the policies of his predecessor and again seized Fadak.

1099 lunar years ago, on this day in 339 AH, the famous Islamic scientist and philosopher, Abu Nasr Mohammad al-Farabi, passed away at the age of 82 in Aleppo, Syria, where he was a luminary at the court of Amir Saif od-Dowla. Born in an Iranian family in Farab, beside the River Jaxartes in Central Asia, after preliminary education he set out for the then centre of the Islamic world, Baghdad, where he studied philosophy, especially Aristotle's peripatetic philosophy under the Christian scholar, Yuhanna bin Haylan. Farabi mastered Greek language and wrote commentaries on Aristotle’s works. In view of this, he was acclaimed as “Mo'allem ath-Thani” (Second Teacher), while Aristotle was “Mo'allem al-Awwal” (First Teacher). Farabi's school of philosophy breaks from Plato and Aristotle and moves from metaphysics to methodology, a move that anticipates modernity. As a follower of the Ahl al-Bayt of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), he discovered the limits of human knowledge, compared to divinely-revealed wisdom. He says in the preface of his work “Ehsa al-Oloum” that his most important goal in writing this book is to present a list of the various branches of sciences of his era and cognize the main and secondary elements of each particular branch of knowledge. He strove to prove that there is no contradiction between rationalistic philosophy and Islam. He is thus regarded as founder of Islamic political science. Farabi’s most important views are raised in his books like “Kitab as-Siyasah” (Book of Politics), and “as-Siyasat al-Madaniyah” (Civics). He viewed religion as a symbolic rendering of the Ultimate Truth, and, like Plato, saw it as the duty of the philosopher to provide guidance to the state. He, however, differed from the Platonic view and said the “Medinat-al-Fazela” or Perfect State is the one that is ruled by the Prophet or the divinely-appointed Imam, instead of the philosopher-king envisaged by Plato. He pointed out that the “Perfectly Ideal State” was founded in Medina by Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), who was in direct communion with God. In his excellent book “Mabadi Ara al-Ahl al-Madinat al-Fazelah” (Basis of Views of the People of the Perfect State), he says the ideal government strives to heal the souls of the people, establishes justice and guides them towards "true happiness". He classifies as "vicious", the societies that have fallen short of the ideal of the "Perfect State", and divides them into three categories – ignorant, wicked and errant. He uses the term “Madinat az-Zallah” (Vicious Society), saying that ignorant societies have, for whatever reason, failed to comprehend the purpose of human existence, and have supplanted the pursuit of happiness for another (inferior) goal, whether this be wealth, sensual gratification, or power. It is interesting to note that modern western democratic societies also fall into this category, as they too lack any guiding principle. According to Farabi, the second and third categories of vicious societies, that is the wicked and the errant, have understood the true human end, but they have failed to follow it; the former because it has willfully abandoned it, and the latter because its leaders have deceived and misguided them. This great Muslim philosopher was an expert in other branches of sciences like logic, sociology, mathematics, cosmology, alchemy, psychology, education, and music. He wrote around 70 books.

961 solar years ago, on this day in 1056 AD, the supernova in the Crab nebula was last seen by the naked eye. According to historical documents, as recorded by the Chinese court astronomer and astrologer of those days, Yang Wei-Te, in its first two months in the year 1054, the star was of yellow colour. It remained visible for 653 days, as is also attested by the Islamic astronomers of those days.

401 solar years ago, on this day in 1616 AD, Spanish poet and novelist, Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra, died in Madrid at the age of 59. Born near Madrid, his magnum opus “Don Quixote” is considered to be the first modern European novel. It follows the adventures of Alonso Quixano, who reads so many chivalric novels that he loses his sanity and decides to set out to revive chivalry, undo wrongs, and bring justice to the world, under the name Don Quixote. He recruits a simple farmer, Sancho Panza, as his squire, who often employs a unique, earthly wit in dealing with Don Quixote's rhetorical orations on antiquated knighthood. Cervantes’ influence on the Spanish language has been so great that the language is often called “la Lengua de Cervantes” (the Language of Cervantes). “Don Quixote” has been regarded chiefly as a novel of purpose. He wrote it to satirize the chivalric romance and to challenge the popularity of a form of literature that had been a favorite of the general public for more than a century. Cervantes enlisted as a soldier in a Spanish Navy infantry regiment and continued and was captured by Algerian-Ottoman naval forces. After 5 years of captivity he was released by his captors.

395 solar years ago, on this day in 1622 AD, the strategically located Hormuz Island in the Strait of the same name at the entry of the Persian Gulf was liberated from over a century of Portuguese occupation by a joint Iranian-English fleet. The victory entirely changed the balance of power and trade to the benefit of the Safavid Empire and the English East India Company. The Iranians first besieged Qeshm Island – the largest in the Persian Gulf and also under Portuguese occupation. Shah Abbas the Great dispatched his famous general Imam Qoli Khan, the son of Allahverdi Khan, to negotiate with the English, and after the liberation of Qeshm, the joint Iranian-English fleet sailed to Hormuz and the Safavids captured the town by sinking the Portuguese fleet. Twenty years earlier, Shah Abbas I had liberated Bahrain from Portuguese occupation.

293 solar years ago, on this day in 1724 AD, Immanuel Kant, Russian-German philosopher was born in the Prussian city of Konigsberg, which since 1946 is in Russia and called Kaliningrad. He spent a lifetime, teaching, learning, and compiling numerous books in different scientific courses such as mathematics, natural sciences, astronomy, logic, and especially philosophy. Kant tried to introduce the role played by experience and wisdom in learning and also the boundaries of wisdom and senses in understanding the world. His philosophy is based on criticism of mankind’s wisdom and understanding and is therefore known as critical philosophy. His books include "Critique of Practical Reason".

226 lunar years ago, on this day in 1212 AH, the great Gnostic scholar, Seyyed Mohammad Mahdi Tabatabaie, famous as Bahr al-Uloum (Ocean of Knowledge), passed away at the age of 57 in holy Najaf and was laid to rest beside the tomb of the famous Founder of the Najaf Seminary, Abu Ja’far Shaikh at-Ta’efa Tusi. Born in the holy city of Karbala, in Iraq, in a family related to the celebrated Allamah Majlisi of Iran, he studied in his hometown, Karbala, under his scholarly father Seyyed Morteza ibn Mohammad Boroujerdi and later under Shaikh Yousuf Bahrani (author of the book "Hada'eq an-Nasera"). He then moved to famous Islamic Seminary of holy Najaf, where he attained Ijtihad. At the age of 31, he came to Mashhad in Khorasan where he stayed for seven years, learning different sciences, as well as philosophy from Mirza Mahdi Shaheed Khorasani. His teacher, because of his extensive knowledge, called him “Baḥr al-Uloum” His sons, grandsons, and direct descendants in Iran and Iraq have continued to use this title as family name. He returned to Najaf to teach, and on the passing away of his teacher, Waheed Behbahani, he became Marja’ (Source of Emulation). He did not confine himself to academic circles, but was also fully involved in social affairs, and strove to resolve the problems facing the people. He was fully proficient in jurisprudence, Hadith, theology, exegesis of the holy Qur’an and the science of transmitters. On his authority, in view of his contacts with the Lord of the Age, Imam Mahdi (may God hasten his reappearance), the exact spots in the Grand Mosque of Kufa and the Sahla Mosque, associated with the Prophets and the Imams, were determined. He groomed a large number of students such as: Seyyed Sadr od-Din Ameli, Shaikh Ja’far Najafi, Seyyed Jawad Ameli, Shaikh Abu Ali Haeri, Mulla Ahmad Naraqi, Seyyed Muhammad Mojahed, Seyyed Abu’l-Qasem Khwansari, Seyyed Dildar Ali Lakhnavi (of India). He wrote several books, including “al-Masabih” on jurisprudence, “ad-Durrah an-Najafiyyah”, “Mishkat al-Hedayah” and “Tuhfat- al-Keraam” on history of Mecca and Masjid al-Haraam (Great Sacred Mosque), besides a Collection of poems on the merits of the Infallible Imams of the Household of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA).  

122 solar years ago, on this day in 1895 AD, the people of Cuba staged an uprising for liberation from the yoke of Spanish colonial rule. This was the third uprising of the Cubans during the second half of the 19^th century for independence. To crush the Cuban revolutionaries, Spain dispatched 300,000 troops. Amid these events that dragged on for several years, the US blew up its own ship, USS Maine, in Havana harbour and by putting the blame on Spanish forces, declared war on Spain in 1898. At the end of the 4-year war that lasted till 1902, the US had occupied Cuba, Guam Island in the Pacific Ocean and the Philippines.

113 solar years ago, on this day in 1904 AD, US physicist and the builder of atomic bomb, Robert Oppenheimer, was born. Prior to the break out of World War II, he conducted extensive studies on atoms, the nuclear fusion process and the explosive release of massive energy. During World War II, he was appointed as the caretaker of US Defense Department’s research unit, and the three initial atomic bombs were developed under his supervision. However, when the US killed tens of thousands of people in the atomic bombardment of Japan in 1945, Oppenheimer regretted his actions and called for usage of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.

102 solar years ago, on this day in 1915 AD, modern chemical weapons were first used in a war. German troops released chlorine gas from several metal cylinders on the front lines at Ypres, Belgium, during WW I. The cloud of yellow-green gas with a strong odour was blown by wind over the French trenches, painfully killing 5,000 soldiers. Chlorine causes suffocation, constriction of the chest, tightness in the throat, and edema of the lungs. As little as 2.5 mg per liter (approximately 0.085 percent by volume) in the atmosphere causes death in minutes.

69 solar years ago, on this day in 1948 AD, the illegal European Zionist migrants in Palestine attacked and occupied the Mediterranean port city of Haifa, martyring 500 Palestinians and wounding several hundred others. When the terrified Arab women, children and old men fled to the harbour for possible evacuation to safe places, the Zionists brutally attacked them, martyring over 100 other innocent Palestinians and injuring more than 200. These and other massacres were a prelude to the illegitimate birth of Israel on Palestinian soil on May 14, 1948.

56 solar years ago, on this day in 1961 AD, the actions of the French secret army for continued occupation of Algeria resulted in the killing of at least 1,200 people in the capital, Algiers. The backlash forced French president, General Charles de Gaulle, to grant autonomy to Algeria, but the Algerian combatants, who demanded complete independence, continued to confront the French troops. The concessions that de Gaulle granted to the Algerian Liberation Front were opposed by some French commanders and troops in Algeria. The secret army committed numerous crimes in Algeria, but it disintegrated with the detention of its leaders.

47 solar years ago, on this day in 1970 AD, Earth Day and Earth Week were marked for the first time as a result of a lifelong campaign by peace activist, John McConnell, for ensuring clean and healthy environment in view of the hazards posed by industrialization.

38 solar years ago, on this day in 1979 AD, the Father of the Islamic Revolution, Imam Khomeini (RA), ordered establishment of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC). The main duty of IRGC is defence of the Islamic Revolution, and since its formation IRGC has decisively confronted anti-revolutionary groups and their plots to destabilize the country. The IRGC personnel showed their skill and valour during the 8-year war imposed on Iran by the US through Saddam of the repressive Ba’th minority regime of Iraq, thereby thwarting enemy designs. After end of the imposed war, the IRGC has maintained its military preparedness in the face of enemy threats against the Islamic Revolution and Iran by actively participating in various development projects at home and abroad, including defending the oppressed people of the region against state and non-state terrorists.

37 solar years ago, on this day in 1980 AD, the University of Tabriz was liberated by the Muslim masses of this northwestern city from occupation of the US-backed MKO hypocrites. Five days earlier, following the takeover of Tabriz University by Muslim students, the hypocrites who had entrenched themselves in the Teachers’ Training College were give a 3-day ultimatum by the Revolutionary Council, and when they refused to evacuate, the public burst into the campus to drive them out. Imam Khomeini (RA) supported the move and agreed with the closure of universities all over the country for conducting a fundamental review of the system of education in line with Islamic teachings. The universities were finally reopened on 18 December 1982.

33 solar years ago, on this day in 1984 AD, the war of tankers was started by Ba’thist Iraq following blocking of Iraqi exports of oil via the Shatt-al-Arab waterway, and Syria’s closure of Iraq's pipeline to the Mediterranean Sea. Iraq attacked Iranian tankers and the vital oil terminal at Khark Island. It then attacked Kuwaiti and Saudi tankers in a bid to lay the blame on Iran, so that its godfather the US would intrude into the Persian Gulf on the pretext of preventing Iran from blocking the Hormuz Strait. The Iranians limited their retaliatory attacks to Iraqi shipping, leaving the Hormuz Strait open to general passage to thwart the plot. Nonetheless, as Iraq’s lawlessness continued, Kuwait officially requested mischief-monger US to provide its tankers with naval escort.

23 solar years ago, on this day in 1994 AD, 7,000 ethnic Tutsis were slaughtered in stadium of Kibuye in Rwanda by the Hutu. Initially gasoline was used to set ablaze a building where 500 Tutsis were hiding. In 2001 Benedictine Sister Maria Kisito stood trial in Belgium for providing the gasoline.

AS/SS