The Arab Shi'a The Forgotten Muslims

by Fuller, Graham E.; Francke, Rend Rahim

• ISBN13: 9780312239565
• ISBN10: 0312239564
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2001-09-22
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan

Summary

This is the first book to examine the Arab Shi'a community, a group whose identity and problematic relationship with the rest of the Middle East cuts to the heart of the crisis of Arab politics and society. From southern Iraq and along the coast of the Persian Gulf, the Arab Shi'a are concentrated in the strategic Gulf region; they form majorities in Iraq and Bahrain and they are the largest religious group in Lebanon. Historically there have been major tensions between the Shi'a and Sunni communities. This book, based on extensive field interviews, examines the nature of Shi'ite belief and community life, contemporary political and social problems, key grievances, and the nature of their relationship with the dominant Sunni state today as they seek a major voice in a new political order. Political and social integration of the Shi'a is a key to orderly political evolution in the Gulf in the next century.

Author Biography

Graham E. Fuller is Senior Political Analyst at RAND Corporation.

Rend Rahim Francke is Executive Director of the Iraq Foundation.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	ix
Introduction	1	(8)
The Shi'a Identity	9	(24)
The Arab Shi'a in the Sunni State	33	(20)
Shi'ite Demands and Strategies	53	(18)
The Iranian Connection	71	(16)
The Shi'a of Iraq	87	(32)
The Shi'a of Bahrain	119	(36)
The Shi'a of Kuwait	155	(24)
The Shi'a of Saudi Arabia	179	(24)
The Shi'a of Lebanon	203	(36)
The Shi'a and the West	239	(12)
Conclusions	251	(10)
Appendix	261	(6)
Notes	267	(12)
Selected Bibliography	279	(4)
Index	283