Today is Wednesday; 30th of the Iranian month of Khordad 1397 solar hijri; corresponding to 6th of the Islamic month of Shawwal 1439 lunar hijri; and June 20, 2018, of the Christian Gregorian Calendar.

1561 solar years ago, on this day in 457 AD, Yazdegerd II, the sixteenth Emperor of the Sassanid Empire of Iran, died after a reign of 19 years, and was succeeded by his son, Hormizd III. Son and successor of Bahram V, he spent most of his reign in war against the Hephthalites (Pashtuns) and imposing Zorastrianism on other people.  In 440, Yazdegerd II waged a war against the Roman Empire, making Emperor Theodosius II sue for peace by sending his commander, Anatolius, to the Iranian Emperor’s camp with promise of payment. He then subdued Armenia and sent many Armenian nobles, priests, and troops, to the eastern Sassanid provinces to protect the borders from the invasions of the nomadic Huns. In 453, he moved his court to Naishapur in Khorasan to face the threat from the Huns. He spent many years in war against the Huns, and after that again turned his attention towards Armenia, Caucasian Albania and the Roman Empire. Yazdegerd II was known for his religious zeal in promoting Zoroastrianism, leading to persecutions of Christians, mostly Assyrians. Under his reign, 153,000 Assyrians were massacred solely in Kirkuk in what is now Iraq.

1187 lunar years ago, on this day in 252 AH, the 12^th caliph of the usurper Abbasid regime, al-Musta’in-Billah, was killed in the prison of Baghdad after being deposed and replaced by his cousin, Mu’taz ibn Mutawakkel, by the Turkic guards. The executioner brought the severed head to the capital Samarra at a time when the new caliph was playing chess, and told him: “Behold your cousin's head!” The heartless Mu’taz –who two years later was to martyr through poisoning Imam Ali an-Naqi (AS), the 10th Infallible Heir of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) – replied: "Lay it aside, till I have finished the game." Then having satisfied himself that it was really the head of Musta'in, he ordered 500 gold pieces be given to the assassin as reward. Musta’in, a grandson of the infamous Mu’tasem-Billah, was propelled to power as caliph in 248 AH by the Turkic guards on the mysterious death of his cousin, Muntasir – a devotee of the Prophet’s Ahl al-Bayt who had killed his father, the notorious Mutawakkel for showing hatred towards Imam Ali ibn Abi Taleb (AS). He ruled for four years before falling out with his benefactors who chased him to Baghdad and after a skirmish following exchange of harsh words, forced him to abdicate the caliphate, and eventually killed him in prison.

1013 solar years ago, on this day in 1005 AD, the 7^th self-styled caliph of the Ismaili Shi'ite Muslim Fatemid Dynasty of Egypt-North Africa-Syria, Ali az-Zaher, was born in Cairo to al-Hakem be-Amrillah, at whose mysterious disappearance in 1021, he was proclaimed caliph at the age of 16 under the regency of his aunt Sitt al-Mulk – notorious for her extermination from Egypt of the Druze sect, which regarded Hakem as God’s incarnation. He died at the age of 31 due to a plague after a 15-year reign. His weakness allowed the Turkic slave guards to vie for power, as a result of which the Empire slipped into decadence, although his able Iraqi vizier, Ali bin Ahmad Jarjarai, restored order and stopped the bid of the Byzantine Christian Empire to encroach upon Syria and Aleppo.

652 lunar years ago, on this day in 786 AH, Arabic poet and hadith scholar, Ismail ibn Mohammad Ibn Bardis, passed away. Born in Ba’lbak in what is now Lebanon, he pursued higher studies in Damascus before visiting several Islamic lands. He embarked on a career of teaching, and was known for his frank views. He wrote many books including “Kashf an-Neqaab Amma Rawa ash-Shaykhaan lil-As-haab"

520 solar years ago, on this day in 1498 AD, the Iranian historian, Mohammad bin Khwandshah, popularly known as Mir-Khwand, passed away in Herat, which was then part of Khorasan and is now in present day Afghanistan. He was from a well-known Seyyed family of Bukhara tracing descent to Prophet Mohammad (SAWA). Spending most of his life in Herat in the court of the last Timurid sultan, Hussain Bayqarah, he enjoyed the patronage of the renowned minister, Ali Shir Nava’i, a celebrated writer and poet himself. At the request of his patron, he wrote the general history in Persian titled "Rowzat os-Safa" (Garden of Purity). The work is composed of seven large volumes and a geographic appendix, often considered an 8th volume. The history begins with the pre-Islamic Persian kings and surveys the major Muslim rulers of Iran up to his times. Mir-Khwand’s maternal grandson, the historian Khwandamir, who migrated to Mughal India, wrote a sequel to it, and in the 19th century the Iranian scholar Reza Qoli Khan Hedayat wrote a supplement to this work. Mir-Khwand is often criticized for his highly embellished and bombastic style and for his uncritical approach to the sources, but his history preserves sections from earlier works that have since been lost. Volumes 5 and 6 are particularly reliable, for they utilize the abundant historiographic materials of the Mongol and Timurid periods and furnish independent information on events contemporary or near contemporary to the author’s lifetime.

387 solar years ago, on this day in 1631 AD, Baltimore in Ireland was attacked by a naval force of Algerians and Ottoman Turks, along with Dutch converts to Islam, in the biggest such operation by Muslims in the British Isles in retaliation for European Christian acts of piracy on the African coasts for abduction of black people and their selling as slaves in the Americas. The Muslim naval force was led by Murad Ra’ees, a Dutch captain, who before conversion to Islam was named Jan Janszoon van Harlem. Most of the hundred-odd captives taken to North Africa were English settlers who were exploiting the local Irish people. Three of the captives who were Irish were released and returned to Ireland. The rest started a new life in Algeria and in Istanbul in the palace of the Sultan, since Islam discourages slavery and considers the Mamluk as adopted persons entitled to all privileges as Muslims, including education and training in military, administrative affairs and various other vocations. In the 17th and most of the 18th century, the Mediterranean Sea was a virtual Ottoman Lake with Turkish, Algerian, and Moroccan navigators, wrongly called Barbary Corsairs by the Europeans, operating in the Atlantic Ocean as far as the North Sea and the coasts of Iceland.

262 solar years ago, on this day in 1756 AD, with the fall of the British garrison of Fort William to Mirza Mohammad Siraj od-Dowla, the 18-year old Nawab of Bengal, John Zephaniah Holwell invented the myth of the "Black Hole of Calcutta" to tarnish the image of the Indian people by alleging that 146 Englishmen were crammed in a 14 by 18 feet (4.3 × 5.5 m) dungeon that resulted in the death of 123 of them. Holwell, who claimed to be a survivor, has long been disproved by historians and researchers. R.C. Majumdar in his book "An Advanced History of India" has dismissed the Black Hole story as entirely baseless. British scholar J.H. Little in his article, titled "The 'Black Hole'—The Question of Holwell's Veracity", argues that Holwell's version is nothing but "a gigantic hoax" – invented to rouse sentiments in Britain for military intervention in India. Fort William was set up to protect the British East India Company's trade in Bengal from European rivals such as the French and the Dutch. Siraj od-Dowlah, who was the local ruler of Iranian origin, objected to the British interference in the internal affairs of Bengal, perceiving the militarization of Fort William as a threat to its independence. He ordered an immediate stop to military enhancement and when the British paid no heed, he laid siege and seized the fort. In 1757, the British sent a military force under Robert Clive and by bribing officers of Bengal including the Prime Minister, defeated Siraj od-Dowla in the Battle of Plassey, and later murdered him.

143 solar years ago, on this day in 1875 AD, Ryukyu Islands in the Pacific Ocean, where for several centuries the independent Ryukyu kingdom ruled, were seized by Japan, and in 1879 named the Okinawa Prefecture. Towards the end of World War II, the Okinawa archipelago, which covers an area of 1250 sq km, was occupied by US forces who killed over a quarter of the local people. The US has refused to withdraw from Okinawa, even after 1972 accord for withdrawal, and the frequent demand by the local people for end of American military presence.

141 solar years ago, on this day in 1877 AD, Alexander Graham Bell installed the world's first commercial telephone service in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

106 solar years ago, on this day in 1912 AD, Polish Scientist, Dr. Casimir Funk discovered vitamins. Conducting extensive research, he found that in the food we consume contains some organic combinations that are rather low in amount but are necessary for the metabolism, growth, and health. He named these organic combinations as vitamins. There are different kinds of vitamins, namely A, B, C, D, E, and K vitamins, with each of them having their own features and functions.

58 solar years ago, on this day in 1960 AD, the Mali Federation gained independence from France and later split into Mali and Senegal. Mali, which for centuries was part of various Muslim empires, fell under the control of France during the late 19th century. By 1905, most of the area was under colonial rule as a part of French Sudan. In early 1959, French Sudan (which changed its name to the Sudanese Republic) and Senegal united to become the Mali Federation. Senegal withdrew from the federation in August 1960, which allowed the Sudanese Republic to become the independent Republic of Mali on 22 September 1960. Both Mali and Senegal are predominantly Muslim countries. Timbuktu, the capital of Mali, is noted for its Islamic culture, Arabic manuscripts, and Sufi shrines, some of which were destroyed by al-Qa'eda terrorists during an insurrection.

24 solar years ago, on this day in 1994 AD, the MKO terrorists committed a blasphemous crime in Mashhad by triggering a bomb blast in the holy shrine of Imam Reza (AS), the 8^th Infallible Heir of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), while pilgrims were commemorating the anniversary of the tragedy of Ashura – the 10^th of Moharram. Scores of pilgrims were martyred or wounded and part of the holy shrine was damaged. The Leader of Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, in his message of condolences to the Iranian nation, said: By committing such a sacrilegious crime, the MKO terrorists showed they are not committed to any humanitarian principle; and their enmity toward the courageous and faithful Iranian nation has no limits.

16 solar years ago, on this day in 2002 AD, the renowned Islamic missionary, Hojjat-al-Islam Seyyed Sa’eed Akhtar Rizvi, passed away at the age of 75 in Tanzania, and was laid to rest in Dar-es-Salaam. Born in Ushri, Saran district, Bihar state, India to the religious scholar Seyyed Abul-Hassan Rizvi, he completed his studies at the Islamic seminary of holy Najaf in Iraq, where he mastered the Arabic and Persian languages as well, besides in native Urdu and English. In 1959 he was sent as missionary to Lindi in Tanzania, and in 1964 founded the Bilal Muslim Mission, whose branches he soon established in various cities of Tanzania and Kenya. Through his mission he introduced correspondence courses in Islamic studies in English and Swahili – language in which he became proficient and also learned Gujarati and Hindi. He traveled and lectured to university students in Africa, Europe, Canada and USA; and authored over 140 books, of which 22 have been translated into several world languages. Through his selfless endeavours, over 100,000 ethnic Africans discovered the truth of Islam, and became followers of the School of the Blesse Household (Ahl al-Bayt) of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA). His son, Hojjat-al-Islam Seyyed Mohammad Rizvi, is based in Canada, and is the Chief Missionary of the Islamic Shi’a Ithna‘asheri Ja’fari Centre of Toronto.

AS/ME