From the early seventh century, the question of succession became the thorniest, most divisive and indeed the bloodiest issue in Islamic history. Of the first four caliphs, the rulers of the faith after Muhammad, three were murdered. (There has been a persistent suspicion that Abu Bakr, the first caliph, elected immediately after the Prophet’s death in 632, was poisoned, too.) When Ali ibn Abi Talib, the cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet—and his closest blood relative—was pushed aside in favor of Abu Bakr, to the outrage of supporters who would form “the party of Ali” (shi’at Ali in Arabic, the origin of the term Shiite),...

Source: Wall Street Journal September 11, 2020 15:11 UTC