Word: husain
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Dates: during 1982-1982
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...divinely guided leaders and mediators between God and man. The last of twelve Imams disappeared in 940, and is believed to be in hiding, awaiting the right moment to re-emerge and establish a purified Islamic government of justice. Because of the violent deaths of Ali and his son Husain, Shi'ites, unlike Sunnis, emphasize martyrdom and atonement. Every year the Shi'ites mourn Husain's death with public re-enactments of the occurrence and displays of self-flagellation. The same passion seems to have motivated hundreds of thousands of unarmed Iranians who faced down the Shah...