Sunni-Shi’ite Violence
Tuesday, December 5th, 2006Note from the Hosts: We received this essay from Dr. Chandra Muzaffar, President of the International Movement for a Just World (JUST), one of the co-sponsoring organizations for the Global Dialogue of Civilizations. We welcome your replies. (Email: iep21@seachanges.net)
23 November 2006 was the bloodiest day in Iraq since the invasion and occupation of that land in March 2003. 202 people were killed in a Shiite stronghold, allegedly by Sunni suicide bombers. The Shiites who are the majority retaliated almost immediately by massacring at least 18 Sunnis.
This tit for tat Sunni- Shiite violence has been going on for some time now. It took a turn for the worse with the bombing of a sacred Shiite shrine in Samarra on 22 February 2006. Sectarian violence has become so bad that many fear that Iraq may well be on the verge of an all-out civil war.
What is the primary cause of this violence? Is it rooted in Sunni-Shiite doctrinal differences that go back to the early decades of Islam? Or, is it the consequence of more recent political developments in Iraq?
