Al-Najaf
(2002 est. pop. 563,000). Also known as Mashhad ʿAli, al-Najaf is one of the holiest cities of Shiʿa Islam. It is located in Central Iraq, a few kilometers west of the Euphrates River near Kufa. Prior to their expulsion during the Iran-Iraq War, nearly one-quarter of the city's population was of Iranian descent.
According to tradition, the city contains the burial site of ʿAli ibn Abi Talib (c.
600–661 CE), cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet Muhammad, fourth caliph, and the spiritual founder of Shiʿa Islam. A shrine was built over ʿAli's presumed tomb in the early tenth century after it had already become a center of pilgrimage. The shrine was destroyed and rebuilt several times, and today it constitutes a sanctuary with a large mosque and an adjoining Shiʿa college. The old city is still encircled by a wall that dates back to Ottoman times, and the outskirts contain a number of Shiʿa cemeteries. Also nearby are the remains of several early Christian monasteries. The city contains a series of mazelike cellars that was constructed to provide shelter from the desert heat and has been used as a hiding place for political opposition groups. Due to its religious status al-Najaf developed a strong tradition of political autonomy, which often led to resistance and rebellion against the central authorities in Baghdad.
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