The Role of Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr in Shii Political Activism in Iraq from 1958 to 1980

On 8 April 1980, Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr was executed. His execution arousedno criticism from the West against the Iraqi regime, however, because Sadr had openly supported the Ayatollah Khomeini’s regime in Iran and because the West was distracted by the turbulence in Iran that followed the revolution.

Governments both in the West and in the region were concerned that the Iranian revolution would be “exported,” and they set about eliminating that threat. When Ayatollah Khomeini called upon Muslims in Iraq to follow the example of the Iranian people and rise up against the corrupt secular Bathist socialist regime, they interpreted it as the first step in the spread of Islamic radicalism that would eventually lead to the destablization of the whole region.

Sadr’s support of the Khomeini crusade against the Ba’thists was considered a threat to the Iraqi regime and dealt with swiftly. Thousands were arrested, and hundreds were executed without trial. Sadr as the head of a movement that had gained popular support from the success of the Iranian revolution, emerged as an anti-governmental leader and a catalyst for anti-Ba’thist activity, and was regarded by his followers as the “future Khomeini” of Iraq.The Ba’thist regime decided that he had to be eliminated if the regime was to survive. Sadr’s execution, hence, was the act of an authoritarian regime fighting for its survival.

Bibliographic Information

Thesis Title: The Role of Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr in Shii Political Activism in Iraq from 1958 to 1980

Author(s): Talib Aziz

Published in: International Journal of Middle East Studies · May 1993

 Language: English

Length: 16 Pages

The Role of Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr in Shii Political Activism in Iraq from 1958 to 1980