AL ARBA'IN

The Safar Uprising of 1977 represented a pivotal moment in the history of Iraq during the
era of Ba’athist rule (1968–2003). This uprising was not merely a spontaneous public reaction to
the government’s prohibition of religious rituals (particularly the Shi’a mourning ceremonies), but
rather a critical episode in a broader series of political events that exposed the underlying tensions
between the ruling regime and Iraqi society—especially in relation to freedom of expression, and
religious and political practices.
The primary objective of this study is to shed light on the political impact of the 1977 Safar Uprising
on Iraq’s political system at the time. The uprising played a significant role in breaking the barrier of
fear that had long prevented Iraqis from confronting the ruling authority, thereby encouraging them
to challenge the Ba’athist government and advocate for their rights and freedoms. Furthermore, it
exposed the Ba’ath Party’s disingenuous Islamic rhetoric, which the regime had employed in an attempt
to gain the support of the Islamic movement following its rise to power in 1968.
Additionally, the uprising triggered internal divisions within the Ba’ath Party itself, as
disagreements emerged among its members regarding how to deal with the protesters. These
divisions highlighted the internal tensions within the party and the difficulties its leadership faced
in maintaining cohesion. Moreover, the Safar Uprising of 1977 served as a precursor to subsequent
mass uprisings that had profound effects on the shaping of modern Iraqi history. Thus, it stands
as a crucial event for understanding the political and social transformations that occurred in Iraq
during this period

Imam Hussein's (peace be upon him) biography represents one of the
most important reformist models in Islamic history, embodying unique
human values of justice, dignity, sacrifice, and reform. The Arbaeen
pilgrimage represents a unique socio-religious experience, where
pilgrims' behavior manifests the finest forms of solidarity, cooperation,
and volunteerism. The research hypothesis suggests that these values and
behaviors form fertile ground for building a just and sustainable societal
model that aligns with sustainable development concepts and goals.
Despite global development theories' evolution, many societies still suffer
from gaps in social justice and sustainable development. In this context,
there is a need to reexamine religious and social values as alternative or
complementary sources for modern development models. This research
seeks to answer the main question: To what extent can Imam Hussein's
biography and his pilgrims' behavior during Arbaeen contribute to building
a just and sustainable society according to modern development concepts?
The research adopted a descriptive-analytical approach through:
(analyzing Hussaini biography content, monitoring and analyzing
behaviors during Arbaeen pilgrimage, then comparing these data with
sustainable development goals). The research includes two sections:
first, a conceptual introduction to sustainable development, and second,
practical aspects of sustainable development from Imam Hussein's
biography and his pilgrims' behaviors during Arbaeen. The research
concluded several findings, including: (sustainable development is a
conscious societal process that matches the characteristics of Hussein's
renaissance objectives, despite temporal and spatial differences, but they
share similarities in eliminating poverty and hunger, achieving quality
education and good health, combating injustice, deviation and corruption,
energy investment, and achieving other sustainable development goals).

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In the month of Ṣafar 1977, the holy city of Najaf witnessed one of
the most significant religiously motivated popular uprisings in modern
Iraqi history. The Ba’athist regime responded with excessive force against
massive crowds who had taken to the streets to commemorate the Husayni
rituals. This study aims to analyze this uprising by exploring the political,
religious, and social contexts that led to it. It investigates both the direct
and indirect causes, explains the regime’s response, and highlights the
stance of the religious authorities—particularly the discourse of Sayyid
Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr (may he rest in peace). The paper also examines
the strategic dimensions and long-term impacts of the uprising, especially
its influence on subsequent movements. A descriptive-analytical method
has been employed to interpret the events and connect them to the broader
historical framework. The study draws on historical sources, contemporary
documents, religious sermons, and statements issued by parties involved
in the conflict. The research concludes that the uprising was not a mere
spontaneous protest but rather a pivotal moment that reshaped the
relationship between the state and the Shi‘a community, paving the way
for a new phase of resistant political and religious consciousness

The Arbaeen uprising of 1977, known as the Safar uprising, was an
important turning point in the history of the confrontation between the
followers of the Ahl al-Bayt, peace be upon them, who have been practicing
their rituals with unparalleled commitment for hundreds of years, and the
tyrannical ruling regimes, including the Baath regime, which was known
for its tyranny and its fight against those rituals.
This uprising, represented by the insistence of the visitors to continue
the march on foot from Najaf to Karbala despite the ban decision, revealed
to local and regional public opinion that the will of the people does not
submit to the decisions of the tyrannical regime, which was confused in
its decisions, violated the sanctities, and confronted with the force of arms
and men to stop the advance of this peaceful march.
Various books, studies and research have been written about this uprising
by researchers, historians and academics, and it has also been covered in
dozens of articles by a number of other writers in various newspapers and
magazines, especially after the fall of the Baathist regime in 2003.
On the literary side, the uprising did not receive the attention that is
commensurate with its importance. We only observed some scattered poems here and there. However, the most important thing we observed was an important literary novel that archived the uprising in an enjoyable and solid literary form, which is the novel (The Bloody Ascension) by the short story writer Abdullah Al-Mayali from the holy city of Najaf. It is the winning novel in the tenth Al-Saffir Cultural Festival for the year 2021, which is the festival held annually by the Secretariat of the Great Mosque of Kufa This novel, as writers with our literary and critical interests, can be
considered part of the literature of resistance, even though the march on
foot from Najaf to Karbala was a peaceful march in every sense. However,
the resistance was represented by that great determination and unparalleled enthusiasm to confront the tyrannical regime despite its tyranny, brutality, and armed forces

The term strategy is an important term used in the past. Strategy
denotes the art of leadership in war. It is a Greek word associated with
leaders, due to their resilience and superior capabilities, which enable
them to achieve broad objectives with minimal capabilities. Strategy is
also closely linked to crisis management, as evidenced by US Secretary
of Defense McNamara’s statement that the focus is no longer on strategy,
but rather crisis management.
Security strategies are the foundation for the success of the Arbaeen
visit, due to the integrated work they provide, which relies on confronting
the challenges facing this visit and the preemptive operations that may
precede it, as well as confronting the threat of terrorist groups after 2014.
A number of strategies have been adopted to ensure the success of this
visit, and this is what we will address in this research.