The Shia-Sunni Debate

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Throughout the history of Iraq the Shia and Sunni debate has been long and devastating for the Shia community. The Shias repeatedly suffered “indirect and direct persecution from the Iraqi government, Ba’ath Party rule, and during the Saddam Hussein administration.” ("Shia–Sunni relations") During this time it was reported that every Shia family in Iraq had tales of torture and murder to recount. “In 1969 the son of Iraq's highest Shia Ayatollah Muhsin al-Hakin was arrested and tortured and from 1979-1983 Saddam's regime executed forty eight major Shia clerics in Iraq.” ("Shia–Sunni relations") Under Saddam Hussein, the Sunni Muslim minority was favored and the religious peace was upheld through terrorization. With the fall of Saddam, the religious conflict came to a head. “The Shia Muslim majority took control of the government and effectively forced the Sunni Muslim population out. The Iraqi government under Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki targeted the Sunnis by raiding their towns, arresting their people and banning all Sunnis from government and security positions. …show more content…

These actions created the upheaval needed to allow the group called the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) to rise, spread, and ultimately control significant areas of northern and central Iraq.”

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