Shiʿite Muslims make up the second largest sect of the Islamic community after the Sunni Muslims, and they are the predominant Muslim population in Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Iraq, and Iran. There are also significant Shiʿite minorities in...

There are two major branches of Islam. After the death of the prophet Muhammad (c. 632 CE), Muslims who followed Abu Bakr, ʿUmar, and ʿUthman as the temporal and spiritual heads of Islam came to be known as Sunni Muslims. Those following...

Islam: Shiism FOUNDED: 632 C.E.RELIGION AS A PERCENTAGE OF WORLD POPULATION: 2.2 percent Overview One of the two major branches of Islam, Shiism represents about 15 percent of the worldwide Muslim population. The initial split among Muslims occurred in...

NAJAF, Iraq Top Shi'ite clerics, emboldened by what they perceive as a massive turnout by their followers for the coalition of Shi'ite religious parties, have already directed their attention to advocating for an Islamic constitution, several of them said in the aftermath of Sunday's...

This article examines the assertion, widespread in both media and academia, that the Islamic Republic of Iran - and especially the current government under Mahmud Ahmadinejad - is actuated by a powerful, Shi'ite-based messianism. Much evidence appears at first glance to support this assessment:...