Yes

This masters thesis analyses how Iraqi national identity is constructed before and after 2003. It explores what relation the national identity has to Sunni-Arab ethnicity. The study is qualitative and uses social constructivism as a methodological outline. Qualitative interviews are done with six Iraqi-Arab-Sunnis living in Sweden. Diaspora is not an analytical scope. The theoretical framework consists of Benedict Anderson’s theory about nations and nationalism where imagined communities is a key concept. Furthermore, Thomas Hylland Eriksen’s theory about ethnicity and nationalism where social identification is a central concept. Drawn conclusions are that Iraqi nationalism, partly constructed by Sunni hegemony, is the main identification and what the community is imagined from. Sunni ethnicity is mostly rejected, and a Sunni community barely exists. Unlike previous research which argues that Sunnis have redefined themselves through Sunni ethnicity. Iraqi nationalism is constructed against the anomaly which is other nations Iran and the US. It is also constructed by idealizing and remembering the past from a nationalistic perspective. It is constructed as kinship, as equal and with pride. However, the Sunni hegemony implies that Iraqi nationalism is not equal but privileges Sunni ethnicity. Sunni ethnicity is barely visible, but mostly post 2003 through victimhood. Sunni ethnicity was under communicated before 2003 but is over communicated after 2003, especially amongst national institutions. An exclusion of Sunni ethnicity occurs amongst national institutions post 2003.

The political theology of AÎmad Ibn Íanbal (d. 241/855( is analysed through comprehensive examination of the authenticity of theological and juridical books attributed to him. The eponym of the ÍanbalÐ school (madhhab) of law and theology, AÎmad’s importance lies in his teaching as a jurisprudent and his practices as a zÁhid (renunciant), which attracted many students to his circle. However, he is best known for his reputation as a defender of correct belief, and for firmly resisting the doctrine of three ÝAbbÁsid caliphs that the QurÞÁn was created, although he was imprisoned and beaten during the Inquisition known as al-MiÎnah (between 218/833 and c. 232/847). As a result of AÎmad’s importance, a variety of different opinions and epistles were ascribed to him. Theologically, the most important among these are the Six Creeds and al-Radd ÝalÁ al-ZanÁdiqah wa-al-JahmÐyah which is a polemical epistle. In jurisprudence there were response collections from AÎmad’s students called al-MasÁÞil, eight of which are still extant, either partly or completely. These works are examined in this thesis. AÎmad’s theo-political ideas are critical to understanding the political thought of Sunnism in general, and the study analyses his doctrines on the importance of the JamÁÝah (Community), ÓÁÝah (Obedience) and al-Amr bi-al-maÝrÙf wa-al-nahy Ýan al-munkar (commanding right and forbidding wrong). AÎmad was a quietist thinker, but the main purpose of his quietism was in fact to save the unity of the Muslim community from internal fighting and protect the common people who always lacked security and suffered from threats of looting of their shops and houses. Though a quietist, AÎmad was not in favour of the rulers and avoided all kinds of connections to them, including not accepting their gifts or working with them. He became angry with his family when they accepted the caliph’s money.

In the Middle East region, Iran and Turkey are influential powers, and both countries have relatively stable regimes in the Middle East countries. The two countries have chosen different paths after their political transformation. After reviewing the political practice of the two countries, due to different political environments, the two armies and religions have played prominent but different roles. After the Islamic revolution in Iran, the army was the protector of the regime, while religion played a leading role. After Kemal Ataturk established power, Turkey took a completely secularized road. The Turkish army was the defender of the secularized path independent of the government in the Turkish regime, while Islamic religion tried to exert influence as a political party. In addition, the article discusses whether it is based on complete secularization or is derived from Islamic religious tradition, which is a feasible way to modernize Islamic countries. At present, since Islam still has considerable influence, only by adapting Islam to the needs of modern society and making modernization the internal needs of Islam can Islamic countries be successfully modernized.

Although Islamism could be traced back to the seventh century when prophet Mohamad died and conflict between Shia and Sunni started, the recent growth of Islamism and emerging of new phenomena such as establishing Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt in 1920s, Iranian Islamic revolution in 1979, and some other Islamists groups like Hezbollah, and Al-Qaida highlighted the importance of Islamism. Moreover, forming the new Islamists in Syria, Iraq, and Yemen after the Arab uprising in 2010 which intensified the conflict between Shia and Sunni increased the concerns over increase in sectarianism in the Middle East. Considering the significance of Shia groups in recent movements, it is important to have a deep and comprehensive understanding of the nature and function of Shia Political Islam. Despite internal and external concerns, Shia Political Islam has emerged and continued to have control over power in Iran for more than four decades. The post-revolutionary Islamic government has been able to keep its power through reviving the Shia Movement since the 1979 Islamic revolution. Therefore, this thesis asks ‘how has Shia political Islam managed to survive in Iran over the past four decades? The answer to this question relies specifically on understanding the nature of Shia ideology and how the Shia control entities’ access to petrodollars. The study aims to clarify the concept of Shiism and explain the mechanism of the survival and continuation of the Shia movement in Iran through the lens of Social Movement Theory. This thesis argues that the essential mobilisers of the Shia Movement like the IRGC, the Basij and mosques have succeeded in sustaining the survival of the Shia Political Islam. The durability of this political approach lies in actively reviving the origins of the Shia movement, utilising Shia values, religious symbols and holy events such as Ashura, and financially rewarding the Movement with petrodollars. The mobilisers, especially the IRGC, use these values as a steering fuel to run the Shia Movement and suppress any security threat to its survival. For instance, after the 2009 presidential elections, the Green Movement was a serious security threat to the Islamic Republic and the political approach Shia political Islam. However, the IRGC and the Basij employed Shia symbols to mobilise their social base in a counter-movement in 2019 to overcome the threat of the Green Movement. The thesis concludes that if the Shia mobiliser organisations keep supporting the Shia Movement by utilising Shia values, religious symbols, and available economic resources such as petrodollars, Shia political Islam will stay resilient and survive.

Frågan om ett enat Irak har sedan en tid tillbaka diskuterats av såväl irakiska som utländska politiker, inte minst efter att de USA-ledda militära trupperna avtog och lämnade landet under 2011. Däremot har det varit svårt att uppnå ett enat irakiskt samhälle, sett till det faktum att landet består av många olika religiösa och etniska fraktioner som driver olika politiska agendor. Denna uppsats ämnar att jämföra hur en del utvalda villkor (avseende regerinsbildning, autonomi och representation) från Arend Lijpharts teori om konsociationalism har förändrats i Irak före och efter den kurdiska självständighetsomröstningen den 25:e september 2017. Det är en jämförande fallstudie med en kvalitativ metod. Resultatet visar att villkoret "maktbalans" inte var uppfyllt mellan 2005-2017, men att det delvis uppfylls från 2017 och framåt. Villkoret "flerpartisystem och representation" möttes till viss del mellan 2005 och några år framåt, dock inte från 2017 och framåt. Slutligen är villkoret "segmentell autonomi" uppfyllt under båda tidsperioderna, men efter det kurdiska referendumet har omständigheterna och relationerna mellan KRG och centralregeringen i Baghdad förändrats. / The issue of a united Iraq has for some time been discussed by both Iraqi and foreign politicians, not least after the US-led military troops declined and left the country during 2011. However, it has been difficult to achieve a united Iraqi society, considering the fact that the country consists of many different religious and ethnic groups that run different political agendas. This essay intends to compare how some selected conditions (regarding government formation, autonomy and representation) from Arend Lijphart’s theory of consociationalism have changed in Iraq before and after the Kurdish independence referendum the 25th of September 2017. It is a comparative case study with a qualitative approach. The result shows that the condition ”balance of power” was not fulfilled between 2005-2017, but that it is partly fulfilled from 2017 and onwards. The condition ”multi- party system and representation” was met to some extent between 2005 and a few years ahead, though not from 2017 and onwards. Lastly, the condition ”segmental autonomy” is fulfilled during both time periods, however after the Kurdish referendum, the circumstances and relations between KRG and the central government in Baghdad have altered in some ways.

This thesis is an analytical exploration of the influence of medieval theology on contemporary scholastic traditionalist polemics within Sunni Islam. Intra-Sunni sectarian polemics as an emerging area of study is relatively untouched as opposed to sectarian violence. A detailed mapping of the theological terrain from the genesis of Sunni ‘orthodoxy’ and the perennial tensions within the classical theological tradition and how they have manifested parochially into the contemporary scholastic traditionalist trends of the Barelwi, Deobandi, Ahl-i-Ḥadīth and Wahhābī within the backdrop of the Sufi-Salafi contestation of Sunni authenticity is timely. Concern regarding growing extremism prompted Muslim Ulama, academics and political leaders to create unity initiatives such as the Amman Message and the Sunni Pledge in dealing with this problem and also delineating ‘orthodoxy’. The theological basis for these neo-credos can be explained as doctrinal ‘minimalism’. Minimalism is a growing social construction of scholastic traditionalists through which the warring factions are attempting to salvage the historical continuity with ‘orthodoxy’ and placate Sunni infighting. The thesis aims to examine the theological veracity of the minimalism project and explore its doctrinal, methodological and ethical facets. Polemicism and excommunication is the current state of affairs within Sunni theological discourse. Minimalism is deemed as the antidote to this problem.

This study attempts to present the relations between discourse and ideology in debates taking place in the Bahraini Council of Representatives. It uses critical discourse analysis (CDA) and the Sociocognitive Approach (SCA) to ground the theoretical claims in the idea that Shiite members of parliament (MPs) in the Bahraini Council of Representatives employ discursive strategies differently from Sunni MPs. To test this hypothesis, the research aims first to observe whether, and if so how, the Sunni parties and the Shiite party employ discursive devices and strategies differently to achieve three ideological goals: attempting to gain political advantage discursively in parliamentary debates on topics related to dissent control and political freedom; manoeuvring the definitions of self and others in the contexts of dissent control and political rights; and manipulating the law to support one’s party’s and/or sectarian affiliation’s ideological stances about dissent-controlling laws and the definition of political freedom and political rights. The second aim of the research is to explore whether and how the use of discursive devices and strategies reflects the sectarian ideological conflict in Bahrain. The research critically analyses excerpts on dissent control and personal freedom from the Hansard of the Bahraini Council of Representatives. The research first marks discursive devices used by MPs. It then identifies discursive strategies. The research detects three major discursive strategies that are fulfilled by using the devices and called them ‘corroborating by information’; ‘intensifying grievance’; and ‘centralising pride and dignity’. The analysis shows that some discursive devices are used more intensively, though not exclusively, under certain strategies. The research also notes that the Shiite party, Al Wefaq, employs the strategy of intensifying grievance more often than other strategies. The Al Wefaq members demonstrate more tendency toward objecting than do the other parties to the dissent control in Bahrain. The research relates this tendency to the ideologies of Shi’ism as a religious and political institution that heavily relies on the ideology of protest and the feeling of injustice and discrimination. Finally, the research provides a preview of the use of identified strategies during the unrest that started in Bahrain in February 2011.

<p>This essay is about uncovered women's faith and worship in an urban setting in contemporary Turkey. It researches the possibility of any common factors for uncovered Sunni Muslims' faith and worship as well as what parts of classical Muslim faith they have found negotiable. The essay relates to current literature and research on the topic as well as provides an insider perspective based on interviews with Turkish women.</p>

This paper is an attempt to describe how two religious edicts by the current Egyptian grand mufti relate to an ongoing theological debate in the Muslim world on the nature of miracles and the state of mankind between life and death. The study illustrates how the mufti adheres to the Sunni theological school of Ash‘ariyya and in what way said school has emerged as a theological middle ground between the literal and interpretative schools of thought. The study also reveals how the Mufti as a guardian of the faith must operate within a secularising context and what strategies are possible for him to utilise if he is to meet the demands of a modernised society whilst retaining a coherent religious explanation. In his office as grand mufti, Ali Goma may well be described as a traditionalist where theological matters are considered even if the governmental institute of Dār al- iftā has been modernised under his supervision and now uses 24 hour phone lines, e-mail, facebook and has an official webpage and translates many of its edicts into other languages than Arabic. This means that Dār al-iftā and Ali Goma are communicating an official Islam not only to the Muslims of Egypt, but has transformed from a national institute to a player in the era of globalisation.