Today is Wednesday; 31st of the Iranian month of Mordad 1397 solar hijri, corresponding to 10th of the Islamic month of Zil-Hijjah 1439 lunar hijri; and August 22, 2018, of the Christian Gregorian Calendar.

Today is 10th of the Islamic month of Zil-Hijjah, the day of Eid al-Adha or the Feast of Sacrifice, which is also known as Eid-e Qorban. It commemorates the divine test of Prophet Abraham, who as commanded by God took his firstborn son, Ishmael, for sacrifice, but at the last moment, a ram from heaven was miraculously substituted for his son. Thus, Muslims across the world celebrate the day as a glorious Islamic Eid, promoting the spirit of purity, sincerity and servitude to the Almighty. Many sacrifice an animal, preferably a ram, this day as thanksgiving, and distribute the meat amongst family, friends, and the needy people. We hereby congratulate all Muslims on the auspicious occasion of Eid al-Adha

1111 lunar years ago, on this day in 328 AH, the well-known Muslim author, exegete, and linguist, Abu-Bakr Baghdadi, known as Ibn-e Anbari, died at the age of 57. He had a sharp memory and was known for his ethical virtues. Those, who attended his classes, said that he only relied upon his memory in his classes; hardly using books. His books include "Adaab al-Kateb".

492 solar years ago, on this day in 1526 AD, Sultan Qutb od-Din Bahadur Shah, after returning from exile in Delhi, ascended the throne of Gujarat in western India by removing his youngest brother Mahmoud Shah II, who had been installed as king by the nobles on the murder of the eldest brother, Sikandar Shah, within a few months of the death of his father, Muzaffar Shah II. During his 11-year reign he had to face the menace of the Portuguese who raided the seaports of his realm and seized several islands including what would later be known as Bombay (renamed Mumbai today). He made the fatal mistake of seeking assistance from the Portuguese against the expansion of the Mughals of northern India. While on board a Portuguese ship to sign a treaty, he was treacherously killed by the Portuguese admiral and his body dumped into the sea. The Gujarat kingdom that declared itself independent of the Delhi Sultanate in 1407 by Muzaffar Shah I (son of a Rajput convert to Islam) was a Persianate state and promoted Islamic art, culture and architecture for 166 years until its annexation by the Mughal Emperor, Akbar the Great in 1573.

391 solar years ago, on this day in 1627 AD, the last Battle of La Rochelle broke out in western France between the French Catholics and Protestants. This battle started due to provocation by England. The Catholics, under command of Cardinal Richelieu emerged victorious.

379 solar years ago, on this day in 1639 AD, Madras was founded by the British East India Company on a sliver of land bought from local Nayak rulers in the district of Chennaipatnam which was leased from King Abdullah Qutb Shah of the dynasty of Iranian origin of Hyderabad-Deccan. The area was added to the Qutb Shahi dominions by the Iranian statesman and adventurer, Mohammad Sa’eed Ardestani of Isfahan, titled “Mir Jumla”, who later went over to the Mughal court in northern India, was made governor of Bengal with capital in Dhaka (Bangladesh), and died in Khizrpur, Garo Hills, in what is now the Meghalaya-Assam border, while returning from an expedition to Assam. Madras is derived from the Arabic word Madrasah for school, since there were several Islamic schools in the area. Currently it is called Chennai and is the capital of Tamilnadu State.

320 solar years ago, on this day in 1698 AD, a treaty was signed by Russia, Poland, and Denmark against Sweden. The kings of these three countries intended to divide Sweden amongst them by defeating the young Swedish king, Charles XII. Thus, two years later on April 1700 AD, they attacked Sweden, but were defeated. Charles XII concluded peace with Denmark, and attacked and occupied Poland in 1704, but suffered defeat in his war against Russia.

200 solar years ago, on this day in 1818 AD, Warren Hastings, the first Governor-General of the British occupied parts of India, died in England at the age of 86. He rose from low positions to become governor of the British trading post of Qassimbazaar in Bengal, where he learned Urdu and Persian. He was rapidly promoted in view of his administrative abilities as the crafty British started occupying more parts of Bengal from the Najafi dynasty of Iranian origin, becoming the first Governor of the Presidency of Fort William, the head of the Supreme Council of Bengal, and thereby the first de facto Governor-General of British possessions in India from 1772 to 1785. He was accused of corruption and impeached in 1787.

170 solar years ago, on this day in 1848 AD, the US, as part of its expansionist policies, annexed New Mexico. In the 1830s, it had occupied Texas and in 1846 had seized from Mexico the large region of California including what are now the southwestern US states.

169 solar years ago, on this day in 1849 AD, the first air raid in history was launched by Austria through pilotless balloons against the city of Venice.

158 solar years ago, on this day in 1860 AD, one of the inventors of TV, Paul Gottlieb Nipkow, was born in Germany. He conducted extensive research for telecasting of images, and finally invented a device which could emit image waves for 30-meter distance. He died in 1940.

154 solar years ago, on this day in 1864 AD, the Geneva Convention was signed by twelve countries for providing assistance to soldiers wounded on the battlefields. It stipulated that medical personnel and relief workers are impartial and should be immune from any aggression. The initiator of this treaty was the Swiss figure, Henry Dunant.

68 solar years ago, on this day in 1950 AD, Egypt’s Hassan Abdur-Rahim, the first Muslim to swim the English Channel between Britain and France, did it for the 3rd time and won the Daily Mail race. In all, he successfully swam across the English Channel four times – 1948, 1949, 1950, and 1951.

11 solar years ago, on this day in 2007 AD, Iran developed a new 2,000-pound "smart" bomb, the latest in a recent series of new measures to upgrade the weapons systems, for strengthening the defence capabilities of the Islamic Republic.

8 solar years ago, on this day in 2010 AD Iran started mass production of two models of high-speed missile-launching assault boats, as part of efforts to boost security along its large coastlines on the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.

3 lunar years ago, on this day in 1436 AH, in Mena during the climax of the Hajj rituals, while pilgrims were proceeding in huge numbers for the symbolic stoning of the Satan, the sudden closing of all other paths leading to the site, except for path 204 on which pilgrims were also coming from the opposite direction, led to a horrible stampede and the death of more than seven thousand men and women, including 464 Iranian citizens. This was yet another proof of the mismanagement of the annual Hajj by the Aal-e Saud, who, since 1925 are in occupation of the Land of Revelation which they had seized by massacring tens of thousands of Muslim men, women, and children in the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. The tragedy in Mena could have been averted if the current Heir Apparent, Mohammad bin Salman and his entourage, had not violated the laws by speeding in a motorcade through the parallel paths, oblivious of the plight of pilgrims. Moreover, the security forces not just indifferently watched the stampede but did not allow medical rescue teams to rush to the aid of the victims. They then brought trailers and dumped the corpses along with the injured, resulting in more deaths. The victims were from 42 countries; mostly from Iran, Nigeria, Mali, Egypt and Bangladesh and Indonesia. To add insult to injury the Saudi regime refused to take responsibility for the tragedy and dismissed it as Divine Providence, a factor that angered world Muslims and has led to increasing demands for governance of the holy cities by an international Islamic body and end of Wahhabi occupation of Islam’s two holiest sanctuaries.

AS/SS