Unleashing the Beast

72 / U NLEASHING THE B EAST

empire into Iraq, Iran and parts of Central Asia. As Syria came under Islamic control, the headquarters of the Umayyad Dynasty (661-750) was Damascus, Syria. The third caliph, Othman, was assassinated, precipitating a war between the Sunni and the Shiite Muslims that continues to this day. As the years progressed, several different Islamic dynasties arose. The headquarters of the Shiites eventually became Baghdad, Iraq. In Karballa, Iraq, Hussein, the son of Ali, was murdered, along with 70 followers. Each year during the Islamic month of Muharram, the Shiites commemorate the death of Ali. This division not only split the religion into two branches. it caused a split about where the headquarters should be. While all Muslims consider Mecca and Medina to be sacred places, the Sunnis claimed Mecca as their headquarters and the Shiites moved from Damascus to Baghdad. Today Tehran, Iran, has become the stronghold of the Shiite branch. Eventually the division became so great that 11 of the 12 early Shiite leaders were poisoned or killed by their opposition. According to Shiite belief, the 12 th leader will play a role at the end of days. This 12 th holy man was the 12-year-old son of the 11 th Imam. At age 12, this young boy, destined to be a chosen Imam of the Shiite branch, disappeared off the street in his city and was never found. It is this missing Imam and Islam's strong belief that he will re-appear in the last days that will pave the road for multitudes of Middle Eastern Muslims to accept a future man as their final prophet. The power and influence of this