The War of Shia Religious Authorities

The recent attack on the Iranian embassy in London on March 9 of this year and the temporary occupation of a small part of the embassy was not an isolated incident. Years ago, in April 1980, just a year after the 1979 revolution, the consular section of the Iranian embassy in London was attacked by the 'Revolutionary Democratic Front for the Liberation of Khuzestan.' In that incident, which lasted six days, two Iranian diplomats were killed by the attackers, and the situation ended with the intervention of British police, resulting in the death of five attackers and the arrest of one. It was later revealed that they had been sent on this mission at the instigation of the Iraqi government. However, what recently occurred was fundamentally different from that event or other similar incidents involving attacks on the embassies of the Islamic Republic over the past four decades. This time, the limited attack and temporary occupation of the Iranian embassy in London can be termed a 'war of Shia religious authorities.' The arrest of Seyyed Hossein Shirazi followed his critical speech regarding the concept of Velayat-e Faqih (Guardianship of the Jurist). The recent attack on the Iranian embassy in London and the lowering of the Islamic Republic's flag did not occur for territorial reasons or by opposing political parties. The attackers were not followers of ethnic or religious minorities; they were followers of the Shia authority Ayatollah Seyyed Sadiq Shirazi, who acted in protest against the arrest of his son, Seyyed Hossein Shirazi, in Qom. There is no evidence that this action was ordered by Seyyed Sadiq Shirazi. However, there is no doubt that this action was carried out by his disciples and followers, especially given the clear role of Yasser Al-Habib, a young Shia cleric and his follower, in inciting the attackers. Yasser Al-Habib specifically targets Ayatollah Khamenei in his speeches, questioning his jurisprudence and authority. He believes that Khamenei was granted the title of authority for political reasons and became an Ayatollah overnight, as his academic record does not indicate that he meets the conditions for jurisprudence. The arrest of Seyyed Hossein Shirazi occurred after he harshly criticized the theory of 'absolute guardianship of the jurist,' which is considered the backbone of the Islamic Republic, in a speech in Qom. He equated Velayat-e Faqih with the behavior of Pharaoh, who claimed divinity for himself (I am your supreme lord). He criticized the fact that the jurist is not accountable to anyone, asserting that Pharaoh also did not allow for any objections from others. There is no evidence that the protesters at the Iranian embassy in London acted on the orders of Seyyed Sadiq Shirazi. Years ago, Ayatollah Khamenei reacted to a movement centered around Ayatollah Seyyed Sadiq Shirazi, which promoted Shia by attacking the sanctities of Sunni Islam, labeling this movement as 'English Shia.' Later, a lengthy documentary titled 'English Turbans' was produced inspired by this labeling of the Shirazi movement by Khamenei, which fiercely attacked this movement. To understand the gravity of attributing 'English Shia' to the Shirazi family and the current arrest of Seyyed Hossein Shirazi, it is enough to consider the characteristics of the Shirazi family and their role in Shia authority in contemporary Iranian history. Mirza Shirazi, a prominent figure from this family, is the one who initiated the Tobacco Movement in Iran with a single line. Seyyed Hossein Shirazi is the son of Seyyed Sadiq, and he is the brother of Seyyed Mohammad, who is the son of Seyyed Mahdi, and he is the son of Mirza Habib, and he is the son of Seyyed Agha Bozorg Shirazi, who is the brother of Mirza Shirazi, Seyyed Mohammad Hassan Shirazi, the author of the fatwa against tobacco. It is clear that attributing such a family to being 'English Shia' is considered a great insult to this family and their followers, especially since the leader of the Islamic Republic has not even met the conditions for jurisprudence, let alone authority. In such circumstances, the arrest of Seyyed Hossein Shirazi, who has been out of contact since his arrest on March 6, is not only seen as the detention of a jurist and the son of a religious authority but also as an insult to the prominent Shirazi family, which has produced six religious authorities, including Mirza Shirazi. It is clear that the arrest of Seyyed Hossein Shirazi is not the end of a case but the beginning of a case that started with protests against the Iranian consulate in Karbala and continued with the several-hour attack on the Iranian embassy in London. It is not unlikely that such incidents will recur. The discontent of the Shirazi family with the Islamic Republic is not limited to the recent case of the arrest of Seyyed Hossein Shirazi. Before him, his uncle Seyyed Mohammad Shirazi was angered by Ayatollah Khomeini during the Iran-Iraq War for declaring the war between the two countries to be forbidden. For this reason, he was placed under house arrest for over 20 years until he passed away in that situation. What is certain is that the arrest of Seyyed Hossein Shirazi has widened the gap between what was once recognized as the distinction between the ideological school of Ayatollah Khomeini and that of Ayatollah Seyyed Mohammad Shirazi, which is unlikely to be easily overlooked by the followers of the Shirazi school. If Seyyed Mohammad Shirazi spent 20 years under house arrest until his death, the media controlled by this ideological movement will not allow the issue to be forgotten. With this description, it can be assumed that the 'war of Shia religious authorities' has begun.