1999 Shia uprising in Iraq

Revolt In Iraq November 2019 1999 Shia uprising in Iraq Prelude to the Iraq war Fedayeen Saddam militiamen marching in Baghdad 18 February – April 1999 Iraq Iraqi government victory Iraq 1991 Baathist Iraq Iraqi Armed Forces Republican GuardReligion: The curse of Saddam City Alexander Smoltczyk http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/religion-the-curse-of-saddam-city-a-246717.html Spiegel Online 28 April 2003 17 August 2013 Fedayeen Saddam Ba'ath Party Shiism arabic blue.svg Rebels: SCIRI / Badr DawaAmnesty International, Iraq: Victims of Systematic Repression, 24 November 1999, MDE 14/010/1999 Iraq 1991 Saddam HusseinPresident of IraqIraq 1991 Ali Hassan al-MajidIraqi Intelligence DirectorIraq 1991 Taha YasinVice President of IraqIraq 1991 Izzat Ibrahim al-DouriDeputy Chairman of the Iraqi Revolutionary Command CouncilIraq 1991 Tariq AzizMember of the Iraqi Revolutionary Command CouncilIraq 1991 Qusay HusseinSon of Saddam Hussein Shiism arabic blue.svg Mohammed al-Sadr Shia cleric and opposition leader Shiism arabic blue.svg Mohammad Baqir al-HakimLeader of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in IraqShiism arabic blue.svg Abdul Aziz al-HakimLeader of the Badr CorpsShiism arabic blue.svg Hadi al-AmiriBadr Corps commander 210-410 killed Dozens dead, wounded and arrested Tareekh al-Iraq- By Shaikh Nouman al-Khaz'Ali, Pages 67–72Berman Eli 2011 https://books.google.com/books?id=R7jvDS3OiAUC&pg=PA56 Radical, Religious and Violent MIT Press 56 9780262258005Jehl Douglas https://www.nytimes.com/1999/02/22/world/assassination-of-shiite-cleric-threatens-further-iraqi-unrest.html Assassination of Shiite Cleric Threatens Further Iraqi Unrest The New York Times 22 February 1999 200+ deadSadr the agitator: like father, like son Dan Murphy https://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0427/p01s03-woiq.html/(page)/3 The Christian Science Monitor 27 April 2004 1 February 2013 The 1999 Shia uprising in Iraq (ar انتفاضة العراق 1999 intifāḍa al-ʿIrāq 1999) or Second Sadr Uprising (انتفاضة الصدر intifāḍa ṣadaraEsomba, Steve, Wall Streets Infected By Arab Spring, p. 5) was a short period of unrest in Iraq in early 1999 following the killing of Muhammad al-Sadr allegedly by the then Ba'athist–led government of Iraq. The protests and ensuing violence were strongest in the heavily Shia neighborhoods of Baghdad, as well as southern majority Shiite cities such as Karbala, Nasiriyah, Kufa, Najaf, and Basra. Background 1979–80 Shia uprising in IraqIraq 300 left Epicenters of the uprising yes Baghdad Karbala Nasiriyah Najaf Basra 33.388889 44.458333 top 32.616667 44.033333 right 31.0500 46.2667 right 32.02594 44.34625 right 30.50 47.81 As his power grew, al-Sadr became more and more involved in politics following the Gulf War and throughout the 1990s he openly defied Saddam. He organized the poor Shi'ites of Sadr City, yet another nickname for the Shi'ite neighbourhood in Baghdad, against Saddam and the Baath Party. Sadr gained the support of Shi'ites by reaching out to tribal villages and offering services to them that they would otherwise not have been afforded by Hussein's regime. Saddam began to crack down on the Shi'ite leadership in the late 1990s in an attempt to regain control of Iraq. Sometime before his death, al-Sadr was informed of Saddam's limited patience with him. In defiance, al-Sadr wore his death shroud to his final Friday sermon to show that Shi'ites would not be intimidated by Saddam's oppression and that Sadr would preach the truth even if it meant his own death. He was later killed leaving the mosque in the Iraqi city of Najaf along with two of his sons as they drove through the town. Their car was ambushed by men, and both his sons were killed by gunfire while he was severely injured. He died an hour later in the hospital. Iraqi Shias, as well as most international observers, suspected the Iraqi Baathist government of being involved in, if not directly responsible, for their murders. The Iraqi government denied involvement in the killing, and quickly tried and executed three alleged killers, although one of the suspects had apparently been in prison at the time of the attack on al-Sadr.Understanding Muqtada al-Sadr Nimrod Raphaeli http://www.meforum.org/655/understanding-muqtada-al-sadr Middle East Quarterly Fall 2004 17 August 2013 Uprising February Saddam City 18–21 Following the killing of al-Sadr the Iraqi government withheld news of al-Sadr's death for 24 hours as it tried to pressure the family to not hold witnessed a period of unrest and protests. The Iraqi government in this period also executed al-Sadr's deputy, and confiscated his writings and videos of his sermons.Report on International Religious Freedom Iraq (1999) Section I. Freedom of Religion Unaware of al-Sadr's death, Shiite worshipers arrived at the Rassoul mosque in Saddam City to pray for al-Sadr's recovery. Iraqi soldiers then arrived and ordered the worshipers to leave. The soldiers later opened fire when the worshipers refused to leave, and instead began chanting anti-Saddam slogans and throwing stones, leaving some 80 dead.The Crimes of Saddam Hussein: 1999 Al–Sadr Killings Dave Jones https://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/iraq501/events_alsadr.html PBS 2 February 2013 Following this news spread throughout Saddam City that al-Sadr had been murdered, resulting in mass anti-government demonstrations. The Iraqi government then sealed off Saddam City and deployed the Republican Guard to put down the growing demonstrations. After 24 hours the demonstrations had been largely suppressed, leaving between 27 and 100 dead.Attack could be spark for Shia Muslim uprising David Blair https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iraq/1416418/Attack-could-be-spark-for-Shia-Muslim-uprising.html The Telegraph 17 December 2002 1 February 2013 Iraqi security forces proceeded to arrest representatives of al-Sadr in Baghdad and throughout the south. Unrest spreads 20–21 Officials of the Shiite opposition group, the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq, began accusing the Iraqi government of responsibility for the death of al-Sadr on 20 February, which they saw as part of a government effort to destroy all Shiite opposition groups.http://www.cidcm.umd.edu/mar/chronology.asp?groupId=64506 Chronology for Shi'is in Iraq – Minorities at Risk Project 2 February 2013 https://web.archive.org/web/20160303235313/http://www.cidcm.umd.edu/mar/chronology.asp?groupId=64506 3 March 2016 dead Although the protests in Saddam City had been put down, new protests began to flare across Shiite majority Southern Iraq, with 20 protesters being killed by security forces on the 21, with another 250 arrested across Iraq. Iraqi forces also shelled Nasiriyah after local protesters attacked a government building. Iraqi security forces also opened fire on demonstrators at a Shiite shrine 20 miles from Nasiriyah, killing at least 5, including two 14-year-olds. March Early March On 3 March Ammar al-Hakim, the leader of SCIRI, announced that it had attacked several government buildings in Karbala as part of the revenge operations for the killing of al-Sadr. The ninth and tenth of March saw further clashes between Iraqi security forces and fighters from SCIRI in two southern Iraqi provinces, with SCIRI reporting that over 100 people had been killed in the clashes and 8 government tanks destroyed. Basra, March 17–18 Some of the worst violence of the uprising took place on the evening of 17 March in Basra, when large armed groups of members of the Shiite opposition attacked several police stations and offices of the Iraqi Ba'ath party. Contemporary press reports indicated that the clashes between protesters and security forces were in some cases particularly heavy, involving both armoured units and artillery. The opposition groups were even able to seize and occupy several of the police stations and Ba'ath party offices, which they held until the morning of 18 March, at which point they withdrew. Eyewitnesses talking to Human Rights Watch claimed that in some Basra neighbourhoods the firefight continued for more than an hour, whilst in others gunfire was heard throughout the night.Human Rights Watch, III. The al-Sadr Intifada of 1999, February 2005 The violence resulted in the deaths of several members of the Fedayeen Saddam, the Ba'ath party, and other security services.Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Iraq: March 1999 Shi'a demonstration in Basra concerning the assassination of Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Sadiq-al-Sadr, 7 August 2002, IRQ39404.E In total around 100 were estimated to have died in the Basra clashes.Mass execution claim after Iraq revolt Ian Black https://www.theguardian.com/world/1999/sep/28/ianblack The Guardian 28 September 1999 2 February 2013 Several witnesses told Human Rights Watch that protesters had attacked and killed at least 40 Ba'ath party members. April In possibly some of the last violence of the uprising, there were several clashes between Iraqi security forces and members of the Iraqi opposition across southern Iraq on 24 April. Aftermath Following the stifled uprising the Iraqi government organised a strict crackdown against potential opponents.Tareekh al-Iraq – Sheikh Nouman al-Khaz'Ali The Iraqi government never acknowledged the scale and extent of the uprising and barely reported any news about it. In a rare acknowledgement of domestic unrest, the Iraqi government admitted on 15 May 1999 that there had been anti-government disturbances in Basra in mid March. The Iraqi government however denied reports of widespread killing, and blamed the unrest on Iranian infiltrators.Iraq Concedes That Rioting Occurred in March and Blames Iran https://www.nytimes.com/1999/05/15/world/iraq-concedes-that-rioting-occurred-in-march-and-blames-iran.html The New York Times 15 May 1999 Prosecution Following the 2003 Invasion of Iraq and the toppling of the Ba'athist government the suppression of the events of 1999 were investigated by the Supreme Iraqi Criminal Tribunal.HCC resumes 1999 uprising trial sessions. http://www.thefreelibrary.com/HCC+resumes+1999+uprising+trial+sessions.-a0182186080 Aswat al-Iraq 3 August 2008 1 February 2013 The ensuing trials had 14 defendants,Fourteen defendants in '99 Sadr City uprising appear in court next month http://www.kuna.net.kw/ArticleDetails.aspx?language=en&id=1915733 Kuwait News Agency 11 June 2008 2 February 2013 and ultimately saw Ali Hassan al-Majid, then Director of the Iraqi Intelligence Service, along with former senior Ba'athist officials Aziz Saleh Hassan al-Noman and Mahmood Faizi Mohammed al-Haza sentenced to death. Seven others received prison sentences ranging from six years to life imprisonment for their criminal roles during the uprising.'Chemical Ali' sentenced to death a third time http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/03/02/iraq.chemical.ali/index.html CNN 2 March 2009 1 February 2013 See also 1977 Shia protests in Iraq References Category:Arab rebellions in Iraq Category:Riots and civil disorder in Iraq Shia uprisings in Iraq, 1999 Category:20th-century rebellions Category:1999 conflicts Category:Iraqi opposition (pre-2003) Category:Shia Islam in Iraq Category:Rebellions in Iraq Category:Religion-based civil wars Category:Political repression in Iraq Category:Shia–Sunni sectarian violence Category:Civil wars in Iraq Category:1990s in Baghdad Category:Attacks on police stations in Iraq Category:Attacks on police stations in the 1990s Category:1999 riots Category:Attacks on buildings and structures in 1999 Category:February 1999 in Iraq Category:March 1999 in Iraq Category:April 1999 in Iraq