Today is Sunday; 27th of the Iranian month of Esfand 1396 solar hijri; corresponding to 29th of the Islamic month of Jamadi as-Sani 1439 lunar hijri; and March 18, 2018, of the Christian Gregorian Calendar.

1403 lunar years ago, on this day in 36 AH, according to some historians such as al-Mas’oudi, the Battle of Jamal took place near Basra in southern Iraq in the vicinity of the Persian Gulf, with a decisive victory for the Commander of the Faithful, Imam Ali ibn Abi Taleb (AS), the First Infallible Heir of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA). Other historians have given the 10^th of Jamadi al-Awwal as the date of this crucial battle against a large army of rebels led by a wife of the Prophet named Ayesha, who along with her brother-in-law Zubayr ibn Awam and his close friend Talha ibn Obaidollah, broke the pledge of allegiance to the caliphate of Imam Ali (AS). The seditionists refused to heed the voice of reason for reconciliation, on the pretext of avenging the blood of the 3rd caliph, Osman ibn Affan, although it was Ayesha herself who used to call for the murder of Osman by branding him an apostate. The Imam had no choice but to confront the seditionists, especially after they ordered 600 Muslims beheaded, including 40 in the grand mosque of Basra, in addition to looting the treasury. Before the battle, Imam Ali (AS) made a fervent appeal to avoid the shedding of Muslim blood, and although Zubayr heeded the advice and disengaged from the combat, after recalling the Prophet’s famous hadith on the righteousness of Imam Ali (AS), he was killed under suspicious circumstances, since his son Abdullah who instigated his aunt to enter the battlefield – seated on a camel (Jamal) – was a sworn enemy of the Prophet's Household. After victory over the seditionists, the Imam magnanimously treated his vanquished enemies by sending Ayesha back to Medina under escort of her brother, Mohammad bin Abu Bakr, who was a loyal follower of Imam Ali (AS).

1313 lunar years ago, on this day in 126 AH, the Godless Waleed II, the 11^th self-styled caliph of the usurper Omayyad dynasty, was killed in al-Aghdaf in what is now Jordan, after a reign of a year, two months and ten days, during which he committed many abominable sins, including the cruel martyrdom in Jowzajan in Khorasan, of Yahya ibn Zayd, the grandson of the Prophet’s great-grandson, Imam Zayn al-Abedin (AS). On succeeding his uncle, the tyrant Hesham bin Abdul Malik, he continued his debauched life. He built in his palace a fountain of wine in which he used to take dips. On one occasion he threw the holy Qur’an and riddled it with a volley of arrows. Once, in the state of intoxication and in the act of cohabiting with a drunken concubine, on hearing the call for the Fajr Prayer, he promptly asked the ritually unclean woman to put on his clothes, enter the mosque, and lead the Morning Prayer. Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) had foretold in a famous hadith about this ungodly ruler by name, and called him the Pharaoh of the ummah.

1240 lunar years ago, on this day in 199 AH, Mohammed Ibn Ibrahim Ibn Ismail, popular as Ibn Tabataba, defeated the Abbasid governor of Kufa, and established his short-lived Islamic state in Iraq. A great-great-grandson of Imam Hasan Mojtaba (AS), the elder grandson of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), he died soon afterwards and the forces of Mamoun the self-styled caliph of the usurper Abbasid regime, re-occupied Kufa and its surroundings. Ibn Tabataba’s movement, however, continued after his death, especially in Yemen, where many members of the Tabatabai branch of the Prophet’s descendants ruled and rose to become scholars and jurisprudents.

1187 lunar years ago, on this day in 252 AH, Seyyed Mohammad, the eldest son of Imam Ali an-Naqi al-Hadi (AS), the 10^th Infallible Heir of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), was martyred through poisoning by agents of the usurper Abbasid regime. He was laid to rest in the town of Balad, where his holy shrine is a site of pilgrimage, famous for its miraculous powers and granting of boons. Balad is 80 km north of Baghdad and 50 km south of Samarra. Born in Sarya village near the holy city of Medina around 228 AH, Seyyed Mohammad was on his way to Mecca from Samarra for pilgrimage to the holy Ka’ba, when he was poisoned in Dujail, and after several days of intolerable pain, achieved martyrdom. He was laid to rest by his aggrieved father, Imam Hadi (AS), and grieving younger, the future Imam Hasan al-Askari (AS). Over a century later, the first mausoleum over his tomb was built by Adhod od-Dowla Daylami, the ruler of the Iranian Buwaiyhid Dynasty of Iraq-Iran. It underwent reconstruction in the subsequent centuries and in 10^th century AH, after the conquest of Baghdad by Shah Ismail Safavi, the Iranian Emperor, the mausoleum was expanded to its present size. Currently, despite bomb blasts and threats by the US-Saudi backed Takfiri terrorists, massive renovation of the holy mausoleum is underway, complete with security points and apparatus. Seyyed Mohammad had several sons, of whom some are buried in Khoy and Salmas in Iran. His progeny continued through two of his sons, Ahmad and Ali.

943 solar years ago, on this day in 1075 AD, Iranian Sunni Muslim exegete of the holy Qur'an, narrator of hadith, and linguist, Abu'l-Qasim Mohammad Ibn Omar Zamakhshari, was born in the village of Zamakhshar in the ancient Iranian land of Khwarezm in Central Asia. He studied in Samarqand and Bukhara. He later lived in Baghdad for some years. He followed the Mu'tazali’ite doctrine and was known as “Jarallah” (Neighbour of God), since he stayed for several years in the city of Mecca, spending his time at the holy Ka'ba, the symbolic House of God Almighty. He wrote both in Persian and Arabic, and is best known for “al-Kashshaaf”, a commentary on the holy Qur'an, which is famous for its deep linguistic analysis of the ayahs. Another of his famous books is “Rabi al-Abraar”, a voluminous reference work in which he has exposed the dubious parentage of Mu’awiya ibn Abu Sufyan. He has recorded many of the God-given merits of the Ahl al-Bayt of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) and their superiority over all Muslims. Zamakhshari died at the age of 72 in the city of Gurganj in the ancient Iranian land of Khwarezm, which today is divided between the Central Asian republics of Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.

950 solar years ago, on this day in 1068 AD, a devastating earthquake struck the Levant and parts of Arabia, leaving up to 20,000 dead, and many more injured.

851 solar years ago, on this day in 1167 AD, the Battle of al-Babein took place during the double invasion of Fatemid Egypt by Crusaders and the Turkic rulers of Syria, ending in a tactical draw between the two. King Amalric I of the usurper Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem was met by an army sent by Noor od-Din Zengi under command of his Kurdish general, Shirkuh, whose nephew, Salah od-Din Ayyoubi (Saladin), served as his uncle’s highest-ranking officer in the battle. The two opposing armies were in Egypt because of conspiracy by Vizier Shawar, who solicited the support of Noor od-Din’s generals to gain control of the state. Shawar turned to Shirkuh for assistance. After Shawar found out Shirkuh’s price for fighting for him was higher than he was willing to pay, he turned to Amalric. Shirkuh was almost ready to establish territory of his own in Egypt when Amalric I invaded. After several months of campaigning, Shrikuh was forced to withdraw. The fate of Fatemid Egypt was, however, sealed. In the next couple of years, Salah od-Din, who schemed to become the vizier of the Fatemid caliph, backstabbed his master to seize power, overthrow the Fatemid Dynasty, burn the libraries and persecute Shi’ite Muslims.

777 solar years ago, on this day in 1241 AD, Mongols overwhelmed Polish armies in Krakow in the Battle of Chmielnik and sacked the city. The Mongols, led by Baidar, the son of Chaghtai and grandson of the fearsome Chengiz Khan, had invaded Poland in early 1240 as well and defeated the Poles in the Battle of Tursko. With the defeat of the Polish army, panic spread throughout Europe, but the Mongols did not advance.

508 solar years ago, on this day in 1510 AD, the region called Columbia in South America was seized by the Spanish invaders, who till the 18^th century plundered this land and enslaved its people. In the early 19^th century with the weakening of Spain as a result of Napoleonic wars, the Columbian people led by the famous South American freedom fighter, Simon Bolivar, ended Spanish colonial rule and established an independent republic.

374 solar years ago, on this day in 1644 AD, the third and last Anglo-Powhatan War began in Virginia in what is now the US as part of British encroachment on the territories of the Amerindians. The 2-year war ended with the capture and treacherous killing of Opechancanough by the white men. The first war had lasted from 1610 to 1614, while the second war lasted from 1622 to 1626.

203 solar years ago, on this day in 1815 AD, with the merger of Geneva canton, Switzerland took its current shape and form. Switzerland consists of 25 cantons administered in the form of a confederation. The Paris Conference, after the defeat of Napoleon, ruled that Switzerland should be neutral and not join any alliance, a status maintained till this day. Located in Central Europe it covers an area of 41,000 sq km.

160 solar years ago, on this day in 1858 AD, German inventor, Rudolf Diesel, was born. He conducted research on the driving force of engines and in 1893 managed to invent a device without electricity that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is then injected into the combustion chamber. This is in contrast to spark-ignition engines such as a petrol engine, which uses a spark plug to ignite an air-fuel mixture. The diesel engine has the highest thermal efficiency of any regular internal or external combustion engine due to its very high compression ratio.

132 lunar years ago, on this day in 1307 AH, Persian newssheet “Qanoun” (Law), was published in London during his exile from Iran by Mirza Malkam Khan, an Iranian Armenian who claimed to have converted to Islam. It was banned in Iran since it attacked the Qajarid dynasty and called for modernization on West European patterns. Malkam, who set up in Iran societies similar to the Freemasons, was a controversial person. He was exiled several times until he was appointed ambassador to Italy by Mozaffar ad-Din Shah with the title of Nezam od-Dowlah.

96 solar years ago, on this day in 1922 AD, leader of India’s independence movement, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, was arrested and sentenced to 6-year imprisonment by the British. He was, however, released after two years. By launching the non-violent movement, which he said, he learned after studying the exemplary life of the Martyr of Karbala, Imam Husain (AS), the grandson of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), he succeeded in gaining independence for India.

78 solar years ago, on this day in 1940 AD, during the initial years of World War 2, Germany’s Adolf Hitler and Italy’s Benito Mussolini met at the Brenner Pass in the Alps and agreed to form an alliance of Axis powers against France and Britain.

56 solar years ago, on this day in 1962 AD, struggles of the Algerian Muslim people for independence from France bore fruit after eight years of intense fighting that saw one million people killed by the French occupiers. Based on an agreement reached at the Evian-les-Bains Conference, France recognized Algeria’s independence and withdrew its forces. Nonetheless, the terrorist operations of French secret army continued in Algeria for a while.

53 solar years ago, on this day in 1965 AD, the first spacewalk was achieved when Soviet Cosmonaut Aleksey Leonov performed an Extra Vehicular Activity on exiting the Voskhod 2 spacecraft in orbit. The ability to work outside a space capsule was an important step. The walk was not without problems. After ten minutes Leonov's space suit became over-pressured and basically became a non-functioning balloon. He had to greatly reduce pressure in the suit before he could re-enter the capsule.

53 solar years ago, on this day in 1965 AD, Farouq, the last king of the Khedive Dynasty of Egypt, died in exile in Rome, Italy, at the age of 45 years, 13 years after his overthrow in the military coup carried out by General Mohammad Najib and Colonel Jamal Abdun-Nasser. Crowned king of Egypt and Sudan in 1936 on the death of his father, King Fouad 1, the 16-year old, who on his coronation made a public radio address to the nation – the first time by an Egyptian king – gave himself up to a life of pleasure and luxury. Despite owning thousands of acres of land, dozens of palaces and hundreds of cars, he often travelled to Europe for grand shopping sprees, earning the ire of his subjects. A glutton to the very core, he used to eat 600 oysters a week, and he died in the “Ile de France Restaurant in Rome”, collapsing at the dinner table following a characteristically heavy meal, although some claim he was poisoned by Egyptian Intelligence. Farouq was condemned for his corrupt and ineffectual governance, the continued British occupation of Egypt, and the Egyptian army's failure in the 1948 war on the illegitimate birth of the Zionist entity, Israel. On 23 July 1952, the Free Officers staged a military coup and forced him to abdicate. His baby son, Ahmad Fouad, was proclaimed king, but power was in the hands of Najib and Nasser, who within a year on 18 June 1953, formally abolished the monarchy, ending 150 years of the dynasty founded by the Ottoman Empire’s Albanian governor Mohammad Ali Pasha. One of Farouq’s sisters, Princess Fawzia was the first wife and queen-consort of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the British-installed king of Iran, who after nine years of marriage divorced her in 1948.

22 solar years ago, on this day in 1996 AD, Ayatollah Abu’l-Qasim Rahmani Khalili, passed away at the age of 72. Born in a village near Behshahr, Mazandaran, he completed his studies at the famous seminary of holy Najaf, where he stayed for thirteen years. On return to Iran, he taught and preached for ten years in Behshahr, where he built a mosque, a seminary and a hussainiyah. He then moved to Tehran and for fourteen years taught Islamic courses, before shifting to holy Qom, where he spent the rest of his life, teaching higher Islamic sciences. He wrote many books, including an exegesis of Surah al-Hamd –opening surah of the holy Qur’an.

16 solar years ago, on this day in 2002 AD, Ayatollah Mohammad Mozaffari Qazvini passed away at the age of 76. Born in Qazvin, he was a product of the seminaries of holy Qom and holy Najaf. On his return to Iran he took up residence in his hometown, teaching students and writing books for the next 28 years of his remaining life. Among his works is “Islam and the Medical System”.

7 solar years ago, on this day in 2011 AD, the Islamic Republic of Iran sent into orbit the country’s first space capsule that is able to sustain life, as a test for a future mission that may carry a live animal. Two years later in 2013, Iran sent its first monkey into space, which came back alive.

6 solar years ago, on this day in 2012 AD, Pakistani academic, social worker and religious vocalist, Seyyed Sibt-e Ja’far Zaidi, was martyred at the age of 55 by sectarian terrorists in Karachi. Gifted with a commanding voice, he was a master reciter of elegies for the martyrs of Karbala and has trained a large number of students in the art of Sooz-Khani.

AS/MG