Political Shiism in the Arab world: Rituals, Ideologies, and Politics A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at George Mason University By Jana El Horr Masters of Arts Eastern Mennonite University, 2006 Bachelor of Arts American University of Beirut, 2002 Director: Solon Simmons, Professor School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution Fall Semester 2012 George Mason University Arlington, VA Copyright 2012 Jana El Horr All Rights Reserved ii DEDICATION In memory of my father… iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS To write a dissertation I ran a marathon… In April 2011, I “hit the wall” while writing my dissertation. My research was complete but the inspiration to write was painfully absent. Producing a 200 page dissertation seemed like a never-ending endeavor, and one that could certainly never be completed in a person’s lifetime. One morning, while sitting in a coffee shop in northwest DC and eavesdropping on the conversation of a couple next to me, I heard them talking about “hitting the wall.” I straightened up immediately and began to listen attentively, hoping to get some good tips on how to overcome my “wall”. To my surprise, they were not talking about their own dissertations; they were talking about running a marathon. After doing some research and reading a few articles on long distance running, I became convinced that I needed to run a marathon in order to overcome my writer’s block. In a marathon, most runners “hit the wall” around mile 20 but they learn to overcome it and finish the race at mile 26.2. Therefore, I signed up for a marathon in October and started training. The long runs that I had to do every week in the summer heat of DC in preparation for the big day were as brutal as the many hours I sat in front of my computer staring at the header of Chapter One. Through running however, I learned that I have good runs and bad runs, just like with my writing. Also, I learned to accept that my pace is slow at the beginning, but that I accelerate when closer to the finish line. On October 30th, 2011, on marathon day, I fully anticipated hitting the wall at mile marker 20 and confronting my greatest obstacle. Realizing my fears, I did hit the wall; in fact I hit several walls, most before mile 20. However, throughout the entire race, the only thing I was thinking about was the importance of finishing my dissertation. When I saw the banner at the finish line and realized that I had completed what seemed like an insurmountable challenge, I knew that my mind could overcome anything, even writer’s block. At that moment I knew I was ready to tackle my dissertation. The following Monday, on October 31st, I began writing. Now that this project is over, I am grateful to my committee for their patience and for allowing me the necessary time to finish it. I’m deeply thankful to Dr. Solon Simmons for his guidance throughout the entire process. Thank you for the valuable knowledge you shared with me and for the countless conversations refining my questions and research. Also, I would like to thank Dr. Terrence Lyons and Dr. Jack Goldstone for their dedication, support and feedback. iv Many people have dedicated time, effort and support to helping me accomplish this task. I would like to thank Steve A. Perez and Dr. Joshua Fisher for their editing and insights. Also, I would like to thank Myssan Layci Stouhi whose tremendous help with research accelerated the writing process. I would like to sincerely thank all my friends in Basra, Najaf and Kerbala who put their lives in danger to help me acquire the data I needed. Specifically I would like to thank Issa Moussa and Amir Rufai for their dedication and encouragement. This dissertation would not have been possible without the help of friends who listened to me articulate my ideas and never stopped showing interest. I thank Kristin J. Russo, Kristen Azzam, and Heather Shelford for all their help. Special thanks to Dr. Jayne Docherty, Pat and Earl Martin and all the professors and staff at the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding, Eastern Mennonite University, who continuously supported me through my doctoral program. I would like to express my appreciation to my mother and brother whose love and belief in me helped me push through the hardest times. Even though they have often expressed their skepticism about my research, they always stood by me and were very proud of my accomplishments. Also, I would like to thank Dr. Christine Crumrine who taught me to believe in myself and in my abilities to excel. A special appreciation goes to all the friends who showed me love and support during the hardest times: Diana Abu Abass, Ayman Assi, Hadi Kebbeh, Tarek Soueid, and Michael Riley. Also, I would like to thank all my friends from the running club, especially Kayla Nicolay for helping me overcome the “wall.” I would like to extend special gratitude to all my colleagues at the World Bank who allowed me to take the time off to finish the dissertation. Last but not least, I want to thank my father for being the source of inspiration for this project. He passed away when I was seven, but his death provoked a curiosity in me to research and understand the political and religious context of his era. His religious training in Najaf during the 1960s and 1970s made many of the Shiite clergymen discussed in this dissertation his friends or colleagues—I often heard him refer to them on a first name basis when I was a child. This research helped me understand the religious and political goals he fought for in his youth in Iraq, as well as his political ideals as the Chief Legal Authority of Lebanese Shiism in the 1980s. This dissertation and my entire doctoral journey are dedicated to him. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Notes on transliteration and format ……………………………………………………. ix Glossary of Arabic words ……………………………………………………………….x Abstract................................................................................................................………. xii I- Introduction: History and context ...........................................................................…1 Introduction ................................................................................................................1 Who are the Shiites? ...................................................................................................6 History......................................................................................................................6 Shiite theological revolutions ................................................................................11 The Middle East post World War II .........................................................................14 Cultural Arab Nationalism .....................................................................................14 Capitalism Vs. Communism ..................................................................................17 The rise of Islamic Movements in the Middle East ...............................................19 The rise of political Shiism ....................................................................................21 Critical Issues on contemporary political Shiism .....................................................23 Conclusion ................................................................................................................28 II- Literature review .......................................................................................................30 Introduction ...............................................................................................................30 Shiite Revival for balance in the Middle East ..........................................................33 Arab Shiites struggle for power ................................................................................39 Shiism: a religion of revolution and political protests ..............................................44 Conclusion ................................................................................................................50 III- Methodology .............................................................................................................54 Introduction ..............................................................................................................54 Methodology: Chapters 4, 5, and 6 ...........................................................................54 Chapter 4: Ashura and the Shiite political community: Methodology …………..54 Chapter 5: political Shiism and the debate of ideologies: Methodology ………...56 Chapter 6: political speeches for Arab Shiite mobilization: Methodology ………64 Conclusion …………………………………………………………………………74 IV- Ashura and the Shiite political community ...............................................................75 vi Introduction ...............................................................................................................75 The battle of Kerbala ................................................................................................77 Commemorating Ashura: a historical overview .......................................................79 Ashura rituals: symbols of unity ...............................................................................84 Majalis Tazieh ........................................................................................................85 Self-flagellation......................................................................................................87 Tashbih