Karbala

Chain of Events

Prepared by:     Ramzan Sabir

Sources for this chapter:

Maulana Rafiq H. Naqvi, Khutbas at Salat of Jumu'ah, Idara

Maulana Amir M. Faizi, Muharram Majlis, Idara

Dr. A.S. Hashim's Books: Ahlul Bayt and Al-Khulafaa Al-Rashidoon

Al-Balagh Foundation: Ahlul Bait #5, 1993 (Iran)

HIGHLIGHTS OF KARBALA:  

The events of Karbala reflect the collision of the good versus the evil, the virtuous versus the wicked, the collision of Imam Husain  الحســـين (the head of virtue) versus Yazid   يزيد  (the head of impiety).  Al-Husain was a revolutionary person, a righteous man, the religious authority, the Imam of Muslim Ummah.  As the representative of his grandfather Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), Imam Husain's main concern was to safeguard and protect Islam and guide fellow Muslims.  On the other hand, the staying power of the rulers (Mu'awiya and his son Yazid) depended solely on their dictatorial rule and the  might of the sword.  They used brute force to rule over the Muslim empire even by all possible illicit means.

      Imam Husain as head of Ahlul Bayt  never recognized Mu'awiya nor his followers.  Before him Imam Ali (a.s.) had fought battles against Mu'awiya because Mu'awiya continuously violated the Islamic principles.  Imam Al-Hasan   الحســـن had to swallow the bitter pill of making a peace agreement with Mu'awiya, in order to safeguard the security of the Ummah which was at stake.  When Yazid [son of Mu'awiya] declared himself as a ruler over the Ummah, he demanded Imam Al-Husain's allegiance of loyalty.  Imam Husain on his part flatly rejected Yazid's rule and behavior, for there was no way Yazid could represent Islam, for to do so would be blasphemy.  But Yazid, the tyrant ruler over the Ummah, was adamant in his demand, and tension between the two parties increased day by day.

      Imam Husain was quick to realize that giving allegiance of loyalty to Yazid would serve no purpose but to jeopardize the survival of Islam.  To safeguard and protect Islam therefore, the Imam had no choice but to confront and collide with Yazid's rulership irrespective of consequences.  Since Yazid had ordered his commanders to seize the Imam's allegiance of loyalty at any cost, even by brutal force, the commanders had to assemble a relatively large army, surrounding Imam Husain's camp in a desert called Karbalaكربــــلا .  Then they cut off the basic necessities to the camp, including access to water.  The camp consisted of Imam Husain, his family, friends, and companions, all of whom stood fast and firmly with him.  These braves would rather face death for the noble cause of Islam, than submit to the outrageous tyranny and the un-Islamic ways of Yazid.

      Thus, Karbala proved to be a clash involving Islamic truths versus falsehood, right versus wrong, belief versus disbelief, the oppressed versus the oppressor, faith against brute force.  Karbala was about standing in the face of oppression, regardless and no matter the cost.  Thus, in Karbala, Al-Husain the 57 year old grandson of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), sacrificed his totality and all he had, for one goal.  This goal was to let the truth triumph over falsehood eventually, and he did that brilliantly.  His goal was to foil the plan that Mu'awiya had expertly developed for his son, Yazid, which was to establish a permanent Benu Umayyaبنو أمـــيه     rulership over the Muslim Ummah (even by sacrificing the Islamic principles), but doing it in the name of Islam.  Brilliantly, Imam Husain succeeded in foiling this plan and he exposed the disreputable nature of Benu Umayya though this was at the expense of his life.

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WHO WAS MU'AWIYA? معـــــاويه     

      Mu'awiya was son of Abu Sufyan,أبو ســفـيـان   a leader of Benu Umayya clan   بنـو أمـيه  which was one of the clans of Quraish tribe قـريــش  .  Mu'awiya grew up in a family known to be cunning, worldly, materialistic, and power hungry.  Mu'awiya became Muslim only when Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) triumphed over Mecca.  Those who became Muslim in this manner were called Tulaqaa',  ألطلقـاء (a term scornfully used for the disbelievers who became Muslims to save their lives).   Mu'awiya, his father Abu Sufyan, his mother Hind هــنـد  , and his brother Yazid son of Abu Sufyan were all Tulaqaa';  Mu'awiya never forgot this stigma for the rest of his life; he could never shake it from his mind, thus a feeling of malice and vengeance always existed in his heart.  Mu'awiya's character and aspirations were entirely opposite to that of his sister, Umm Habiba, who was one of the wives of the Holy Prophet (pbuh).  Unlike Mu'awiya, Umm Habiba  أُم حبـيــبه was a sincere believer and a pious person.

      Omar عـمر  , the second Khalifa, appointed Mu'awiya's brother, Yazid son of Abu Sufyan, as the Governor of Syria when the Muslims captured that territory from the Byzantines ألبـزنطيــنـين .  Within a few years, Yazid the son of Abu Sufyan died of a disease, and Omar appointed Mu'awiya in his brother's place as the Governor.  Upon coming to power, Mu'awiya took advantage of the rich public treasury of Syria using it for personal use and to buy favors and influence people.  Thus he built a large base of support among some tribes, almost to the fanatic level.  He used this to his advantage in later years to form a network of informants (spies)عـيون    against Ahlul Bayt (a.s.) and their devotees.

JAMAL CONFRONTATION: موقــعه الجــــمل      

      When Imam Ali (a.s.) became Khalifa, he decided to remove Mu'awiya immediately, notwithstanding Mu'awiya's strong base of support.  At that time, Mu'awiya had been the governor of Syria, Palestine, and Jordan for 17 years.  Mu'awiya became defiant, he refused to obey Ali's orders.  Brazen and unabashed, he even declined to recognize Ali or give allegiance of loyalty to him.  Also in defiance, Mu'awiya established a parallel government in Greater Syria, and started a campaign of treacherous accusations and malicious rumors against Imam Ali.  He falsely blamed Imam Ali for the killing of Uthman, the third Khalifa, and urged people to take up arms against the Imam.  He spread these notorious accusations constantly to incite an uprising against Ali (a.s.).

      At the same time A'isha عائشـه  , the Prophet's widow, became highly vocal against Imam Ali.  She called for taking revenge for the blood of Uthman.  As a result, a party of 3,000 insurgents supported by Sahaaba (Companions) such as Talha طلـحه and Zubair   زبــير, along with A'isha headed toward Basrah.  The insurgents upon reaching Basrah clashed with the local authorities and finally occupied a portion of Basrah. Soon after the occupation these insurgents spread a reign of terror among the people, killing no less than 600 local Muslims, pilfering the treasury and stealing the arms supplies of the armory.

      As a Khalifa in charge, Imam Ali could not ignore the situation, he had to act and restore peace and order.  He ordered his forces to proceed to Basrah. As the Imam's forces reached near Basrah, Imam Ali (a.s.) tried to persuade the insurgents led by A'isha, Zubair and Talha to change their minds and avoid confrontation, but he did not succeed.  A battle broke out though Zubair elected not to fight.  Talha was wounded then bled to death.  Thousands of people lost their lives.  A'isha fell down from the camel after it was disabled; but luckily she was not hurt.  Imam Ali asked Muhammad ibn Abu Bakr, (A'isha's brother)  محمـد بن أبي بكـر   , to take A'isha to Basrah for a few days, and from there to escort her to Medina with full honor and dignity.  Upon leaving Basrah Al-Hasan  and Al-Husain  accompanied the Prophet's widow for some distance before bidding her farewell.  Imam Ali  stayed in Basrah for a few weeks to restore law and order.  He compensated for the dead, and decided to forgive and absolve all who fought against him, exactly as the Prophet (pbuh) had done when he triumphed over Mecca 40 years earlier.

SIFFIN CONFRONTATION:صـفـــين       

      Upon returning to Kufa, Imam Ali (a.s.) immediately prepared for the anticipated clash with Mu'awiya.  The defying Mu'awiya continued to violate the Islamic principles by personally using the public treasury for espionage and buying peoples' loyalty.  The people of Syria fully believed him and in the false picture he presented.  Ultimately this resulted in a confrontation called Battle of Siffin when the troops of the two sides met at Siffin.  The battle saw ferocious fighting for nine days, and by the 9^th day Mu'awiya's forces were near collapse.  His troops were fleeing and in disarray, and their retreat was in massive disorder, running helter skelter.  Mu'awiya, alarmed now, tense, and frightened, and preparing to run away, when he learned of a clever trick.  The trick was so crude and offensive that it was eye catching.  The trick was to exploit the Holy Quran itself and utilize it as a utensil to his advantage.  Mu'awiya seized on this immediately and commanded his fighters to raise 500 Holy Qurans on tips of spears, in order to stun the troops of Imam Ali.  As jolting as it was, this maneuver did break the onslaught and the momentum of Ali's fighters, for they were very pious men.  But Imam Ali was quick to recognize this deceit, he knew how deceitful Mu'awiya was, and now that being near collapse, Mu'awiya wanted to save his neck at the expense of the Quran itself.

    With that in mind, Ali urged his generals not to halt, but to keep fighting since victory was almost at hand.  Alas, Ali's generals and fighters were in shock, for the sight of the Holy Quran high on spear heads was startling to say the least.  They could not take it.  Not willing to fight, they wanted to accept Mu'awiya's offer to halt the fighting and negotiate instead.  The termination of the battle in this manner and the consequences thereof proved to be disastrous to say the least, especially for Ahlul Bayt and Islam.

      It is said that there was a conspiracy between Amr Ibnil Aas عمرو بن العــاص  of Mu'awiya's side, and  Ash'ath Ibn Qais,  ألأشــعث  (a General in Imam Ali's camp), who was working as a spy against Ali, secretly working as an agent for Mu'awiya.  In this battle it is claimed that 45,000 men lost their lives in Mu'awiya's camp, and about 25,000 in Ali's camp.  Many men of high caliber from both sides died, especially Ammar Ibn Yasir, عمـــار بن ياســــر  the great Companion of the Prophet (pbuh), who was 90 years old and fought on Imam Ali's side against Mu'awiya.

AFTER SIFFIN:  

      Imam Ali's generals, who stopped the battle to negotiate with Mu'awiya, did not pick the right person for the negotiation.  They unyieldingly refused to accept Imam Ali's choice, instead they picked Kufa's Governor, Abu-Musa Ash'ari, أبو موسى ألأشــعـري  an incompetent Governor who had been previously dismissed from office by Imam Ali.  Mu'awiya appointed Amr Ibnil Aas, a shrewd and cunning man, to be his representative in the negotiation.  Negotiation between the two sides did not take place for about one year.

      When the two negotiators came face to face, it was clear that Ash'ari's capability was no match for his opponent Ibnil Aas.  In the negotiations, Ash'ari proposed that, both Mu'awiya and Imam Ali (a.s.) were to abdicate and to let the people hold election for the Khilaafah.  Amir Ibnil Aas, a deceptive man at best, quickly agreed to Ash'ari's proposal and asked Ash'ari to first announce the agreement.  Ash'ari stood up and announced, “O people, we have agreed not to consider Ali or Mu'awiya for Khilaafah.  You may choose or elect whomever you think is fit.”  The cunning Amr Ibnil Aas stood up next to say, “O people! I won't consider Ali for the Khilaafah. But Mu'awiya, in my opinion, is the person for that office!”  Upon hearing this (and feeling deceived), the people screamed, disapprovingly so, an uproar was the result.  Imam Ali's camp was in shock, they were double-crossed, deceived, cheated,  and lied to, and as a result they felt deeply cut.  Amr's double crossing and deception was simply beyond their imagination.  They left the place bewildered and utterly disappointed.  Because of this a large group of Imam Ali's supporters defected to form a separate group called Kharijis, ألخــــوارج   meaning the Outsiders.

      The Khariji became fanatically opposed to Imam Ali and Mu'awiya.  Some of their members met secretly in Mecca and drew a plan to assassinate Ali  in Kufa, Mu'awiya in Syria, and Amr Ibnil Aas in Egypt.  Three fanatics took the responsibility; they were to attack their victims in the morning, the same day, as the would-be victims were going to the mosque to lead the morning ٍٍSalat.  Ibn Muljim إبن مـلجم attacked and fatally wounded Imam Ali, whereas Mu'awiya escaped with a light wound of his buttock.  Amr Ibnil Aas was ill that day and his replacement was killed by the Khariji.  Imam Ali, in wounded condition, conferred the Imamah and the reign of the Islamic nation to his 37 years old son Al-Hasan.

PEACE AGREEMENT BETWEEN IMAM AL-HASAN AND MU'AWIYA:  

      Imam Al-Hasan  faced extremely difficult conditions from the start.  He observed that fear, anxiety and much distress were ever present in Kufa, Basrah, Medina and other towns.  The anxiety, uncertainty and insecurity were caused by Mu'awiya's ill dealing of sincere Muslims.  Mu'awiya had spread secret agents all over to defame Ahlul Bayt.  Imam Al-Hasan knew that his father Imam Ali  had stood like a lion in all difficulties and fought battles against Mu'awiya, but these confrontations had resulted in heavy casualties on both sides.  Family devastation on massive scale was visible everywhere.  Considering all circumstances, Imam Al-Hasan discussed the matter with his brother Al-Husain and other relatives.  He revealed to them that in order to end the bloodshed and to provide a reasonable safety and security to the Ummah, he would make a peace agreement with Mu'awiya, to abdicate until after Mu'awiya's death.  After a few days of careful consideration, Imam Al-Hasan accepted an agreement as per the terms dictated by the Imam himself and agreed to by Mu'awiya.  Four noteworthy terms of this agreement were:

1.     People of Syria, Iraq, Hijaz, Yemen and other places shall enjoy amnesty against persecution,

2.     Friends and companions of Imam Ali (a.s.) and all their women and children shall be protected from all dangers,

3.     Mu'awiya is to immediately stop the use of abusive language with reference to Ahlul Bayt (cursing Imam Ali) after Salat of Jumu'ah),     لـَعـْـنُ  عَلِي ٍ على المـنابـر   and

4.     Mu'awiya shall not appoint anyone as his successor.

Once the treaty was signed, Imam Al-Hasan and brother Al-Husain  moved out of Kufa and settled in Medina.  Over in Medina both Imams lost no time in holding nightly meetings for Islamic discussions.  The nightly meetings proved very successful and gained tremendous popularity.  More people started to attend, to hear the Imams give of their fountain of knowledge on Islam and humanity.  The reputation of these meetings began to fly to far away places.  People from as far away as Egypt, Iraq, Yemen, and other distant areas traveled to Medina to learn about the Islamic values.  As years passed, the knowledge thus given started to bear fruits. The number of Islamic scholars multiplied and increased considerably.

      In the meantime Mu'awiya sneakily and unabashedly broke his promises one by one deliberately yet sneakily, and he disregarded most of the terms of his treaty with Imam Al-Hasan step by step.  Instead Mu'awiya did the following:

Ø   He sent secret agents to terrorize, kidnap, or even kill innocent people specially those who were loyal to Ahlul Bayt. 

Ø   Instead of helping the needy with their public treasury, Mu'awiya's governors and their surrogates used the public treasury for their own personal use, freely and excessively, just as they wished. 

Ø   Freedom suddenly died, and dictatorship took its place. 

Ø   Mu'awiya gathered a very large number of collaborators who unabashedly would do any thing for money such as coming forth with fabricated Hadiths

MU'AWIYA'S PLOT TO POISON IMAM HASAN (a.s.):  

      It was Mu'awiya's ardent desire to impose his son Yazid (who had been named after his uncle) upon the Muslims by making him the succeeding Khalifa, despite the fact that Yazid was the playboy of the time, with many evil habits including gambling, heavy drinking, and indulgence in the pleasures of the flesh.  But the peace agreement would not permit Mu'awiya to appoint Yazid as his successor, (According to the agreement Imam Hasan would immediately become Khalifa upon Mu'awiya's death).  Therefore, it was obvious to Mu'awiya that, if Al-Hasan did not outlive him, Mu'awiya could do as he pleased.  Thus Mu'awiya planned to kill Imam Al-Hasan in order to pave the way for his son Yazid to be his successor.

      Mu'awiya sent one of his agents to contact Imam Al-Hasan's wife Jo’da جـعـده who was the daughter of Al-Ash'ath  (once a secret agent for Mu'awiya against Imam Ali in the Battle of Siffin).  Jo’da was asked a small favor, i.e., to put a little poison in Al-Hasan's food, and in return Mu'awiya would give her a large sum of money and also make her wife of his son Yazid.  She found the offer too attractive to ignore, and foolishly agreed to accept it.  A few days later, she mixed poison in honey and gave it to the Imam.  As soon as the Imam took the poisoned honey he became seriously ill.  Sensing that his death was imminent, the Imam designated his brother Al-Husain (a.s.) to be the third Imam.  Although Imam Al-Hasan knew he was poisoned, he did not reveal that fact to anyone but to his brother Al-Husain.

      One thing Al-Hasan had wished for was to have his burial by the side of his grandfather, Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).  Imam Husain made all the arrangements to fulfill that wish but Mu'awiya's governor over Medina did not let that happen and used military force to stop it.  Imam Al-Hasan was 47 year old when he died of this poisoning.

      Medina was never the same without Imam Al-Hasan.  Everyone missed him dearly.  People at first did not believe Mu'awiya poisoned Imam Al-Hasan, but soon found out the truth.

      When Al-Husain was designated as the 3rd Imam he was 46 years old.  Imam Al-Husain carried on with his mission of teaching Islam as before.  A large number of people kept coming to see him and to learn from him.  This process continued for several years when people began to hear an ugly rumor that Mu'awiya wanted his son, Yazid, to succeed him.

MU'AWIYA DESIGNATES YAZID AS SUCCESSOR:  

      Mu'awiya began a campaign to introduce Monarchy into the structure of Islam.  To have Monarchy, by force or otherwise is alien to Islam, monarchy is an innovation in religion, simply not acceptable.  Everyone knew that, for Islam does not subscribe to any form of Royalty through inheritance or Monarchy.  In Islam it is supposed to be Shoora.

      Nevertheless, Mu'awiya sent his agents to the prominent members of the communities to obtain allegiance of loyalty to his son Yazid.  But Yazid was evil, of the drinking type, incompetent, contemptible, and a pleasure-seeking person.  People knew that.  So the people protested vigorously.  There was anger everywhere.  Emotions went sky high.  To calm people down, at least temporarily, Mu'awiya decided to send his son Yazid to Mecca for the pilgrimage.  This proved to be a mockery.  Yes, Yazid did go to Mecca but only, and only after taking his supply of liquor with him and a chorus of loose women for his pleasure.

MU'AWIYA DIES  

      Mu'awiya was getting older day by day.  At the age of 75, he became seriously ill.  He was nearing death.  He lay weak and lifeless as if something was choking and strangling him.  He felt tortured and tormented, and continuously cried for mercy.  He was in terrible pain.  He wanted to die but death would not come close to him.  His conscience tormented him for the calamities that he brought upon the Islamic Ummah specially Ahlul Bayt.  Mu'awiya suffered in agony for many many days.  His suffering continued until he breathed his last.  At the time of his death, the 30 year old Yazid was nowhere near him, he had gone for fun on a hunting trip.

(Please note that Mu'awiya's brother was by the name of Yazid, and Mu'awiya had named his son Yazid in honor of his brother.)

YAZID BECOMES THE RULER:  

      Upon Mu'awiya's death, Yazid, 30 years old, managed to impose himself on the people and become the Khalifa.  At first people refused to accept him as a representative of the Prophet (pbuh) and Islamic Ummah, but Yazid approached people in mosques for their favors.  Like his father Mu'awiya, Yazid used all possible means like bribery, coercion, pressure, threats, and force to receive the people's acceptance of him as the legitimate ruler.  Many people were worried, threats to their lives and livelihood was too menacing, and so they grudgingly and reluctantly gave in and endorsed him.  But, Imam Al-Husain  and his family (who practiced Islam in its true sense), did not give in.  As the true representative of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), Al-Husain flatly refused accepting Yazid either as a Khalifa or a leader of Islam.  Despite Yazid's intimidating military power the Imam stood firm in his resolve and chose to challenge Benu Umayya's authorities.

      Yazid commissioned Waleed Ibn Ut'ba, his Governor over Medina, to ask for Imam Husain's allegiance of loyalty or else upon refusal, his head.  Waleed invited Al-Husain to a meeting for the purpose.  Imam Husain did not give his word at the meeting and decided to leave Medina along with his family to proceed to Mecca.  When Al-Husain reached Mecca he received 12,000 letters from Kufa urging him to go to Kufa to be their leader, and be the Khalifa.  Imam Al-Husain sent an emissary, his cousin Muslim Ibn Aqeel, مسـلم بن عـقـيــل  to Kufa to ascertain first-hand information about the situation in Iraq.  In the mean time Yazid spread a network of informants and secret agents in Mecca to assassinate the Imam during pilgrimage.  Imam learned about the spies, and carefully evaluated the situation in Mecca.  Imam Husain knew that Yazid son of Mu'awiya had no regard for Islamic values and teachings, that he would do anything to enforce his hated rule.  Imam Husain also knew that giving allegiance of loyalty to an imposter like Yazid would certainly place Islam at great jeopardy.  Therefore Al-Husain decided to leave Mecca for Kufa to prepare for a confrontation with Yazid and his forces.

      Many friends and relatives urged Imam Husain not to go to Kufa, but he insisted on going.  Imam Husain, along with family, friends, and companions began the journey toward Kufa (1,100 miles) in a long caravan in the blistering heat of summer.

ON THE WAY TO KARBALA:  

      During the early phase of the journey the caravan met Al-Farazdaq  ألفـــرزدق (a famous poet) at a place called al-Sifah.  Al-Farazdaq advised the Imam not to go to Kufa because though people's hearts were with the Imam; their swords would be against him.  But the Imam continued with the journey, and he received the first letter from his emissary Muslim Ibn Aqeel with good news. The letter indicated that the people were more than ready to welcome the Imam in Kufa and were looking forward to his leadership.  Imam Husain decided to send another emissary to Kufa with a message.  The caravan kept proceeding toward Kufa.  Then, many days passed but the Imam did not receive any more responses from Muslim Ibn Aqeel.

      In the meantime, in Kufa Muslim Bin Aqeel with the help of Mukhtar Al-Thaqafi ألثـقــــفي  and Hani Ibn Urwah   هاني بن عــروه continued to hold secret meetings with the supporters of the Imam.  Within a short time the gatherings started to gain momentum.  Yazid through his spies and informants learned about Muslim's successes in Kufa.  He appointed the tyrant Ubaydullah Ibn Ziyad  عـبـــيد الله بن زياد   to replace al-Nu'man Ibn al-Basheer as Governor of Kufa.

      Meanwhile, as Al-Husain's caravan got closer to its destination (Kufa), coming to a place called Zubalah, Imam Husain unexpectedly received startling news. The shocking news was about Muslim Ibn Aqeel and the person who provided him shelter, Hani's Ibn Urwah, both of whom were arrested and beheaded by the Governor Ibn Ziyad.  Mukhtar was also arrested and imprisoned and tortured by Ibn Ziyad.

      Imam Husain gathered his companions and disclosed to them about the horrifying news, and said, “Our Shi'a have deserted us, those of you who prefer to leave us may do so freely and without guilt”.  Becoming scared, some companions did leave.  Imam Husain continued with the journey along with close companions and family members until he was face to face with 1,000 horsemen led by Hur al-Riyahi   ألحـــر ألريـاحي    representing the enemy.  The enemy army blocked the camps of Imam Husain from advancing.  Tension started to rise between the two.  The Imam addressed the enemy explaining to them his motives for going to Kufa, that it was in response to the invitation of the people.  He even showed them a bagful of letters he received from Kufa.  Hur said that he and his men were not the writers of those letters.  Imam told them that if they did not like him to advance with the journey, he was prepared to return to Hijaz.  Hur replied, “We are commissioned to follow you until we take you to Governor Ibn Ziyad, and suggested to the Imam to go towards a station which is neither Kufa nor Medina”.  Imam Husain found the proposal fair and turned the caravan away from Kufa.  Hur and his army marched parallel to the Imam.  The two sides reached a village called Nainawa where Ibn Ziyad's messenger (Yazid's governor over Kufa) delivered a message to Hur.  The message read, “ ...force Husain to a halt.  But let him stop in an open space, without vegetation or water.”  Hur conveyed the contents of the letter to Imam Husain.  The Imam, his family and companions defiantly resumed their journey and reached a place where another enemy force blocked their move and forced them to stop.   When Imam Husain learned that the place was called Karbala, he felt he reached the destination and ordered his camp to be setup.  That day was 2nd of Muharram, Hijri 61.

KARBALA: كربـــلا      

      Upon learning that his army had succeeded to lay a siege around the Imam's camp, Governor Ibn Ziyad sent additional military units to Karbala and appointed Omar Ibn Sa'ad  عمر بن ســـعـد in charge.  Imam Husain (a.s.) opened a dialogue with Omar Ibn Sa'ad and convinced him to lift the siege so that the Imam with his family and companions could leave Iraq.  Omar Ibn Sa'ad liked the Imam's proposal and sent a message to Governor Ibn Ziyad notifying him about the results of the talks with Imam Husain (a.s.).  Ibn Ziyad also found the Imam's proposal acceptable.  However before agreeing to it officially, Shimr Bin Dhil-Jawshan,  شـــمـر opposed it strongly.  As a result Ziyad wrote a letter to Omar Ibn Sa'ad commanding him to either go to war with Imam Husain or be relieved of his duties as commander of the army and Shimr would not only replace him but dispatch his [Ibn Sa'ad's] head to Kufa.