Ali al-Sistani

Ali al-Sistani (born August 4, 1930, Mashhad, Iran) is an Iranian-born Shiʿi cleric and a leader of the Iraqi Shiʿi community.

Born to a prominent religious family, Sistani studied the Qurʾān from a young age. In his early 20s he left Iran to continue his studies in Iraq, becoming a disciple of Grand Ayatollah Abu al-Qasim al-Khoei in Al-Najaf. Known for his intelligence and charisma, Sistani rose quickly through the clerical ranks, and, unlike Ruhollah Khomeini, a fellow cleric in Al-Najaf who would come to rule Iran (1979–89), Sistani eschewed militancy for a “quietist” philosophy. Shortly after Khoei’s death in 1992, Sistani achieved the status of marjaʿ al-taqlīd (Arabic: “model of emulation”), the highest level of excellence in Twelver Shiʿism (the main body of Shiʿi Muslims). In Al-Najaf, Sistani was devoted to ensuring power for a Shiʿi majority in his adopted country, which had been led by a Sunni minority for centuries. Although he served as the spiritual leader of Iraq’s Shiʿi community, Sistani also commanded the respect of Sunni Arabs and Kurds.

Sistani played a key role in the political proceedings that followed the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, and, although he preferred to give the impression that he did not mix religion and politics, he proved to be an important participant in the planning for Iraq’s first democratic government. Sistani’s support for free elections in Iraq—underscored by a 2004 fatwa (legal opinion) decreeing that Iraqis register to vote—carried great significance. In some cases his credibility outweighed that of not only U.S. and United Nations diplomatic envoys but even the interim government of Prime Minister Ayād ʿAllāwī: his strong and moderating influence among the Iraqi populace as a whole earned him the respect of U.S. diplomats and Iraqi leaders, who deferred to many of his wishes.

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In August 2004 Sistani traveled to Britain to undergo medical treatment and surgery for a worsening heart condition. Meanwhile, Muqtadā al-Ṣadr, a young militant cleric, waged a fierce guerrilla battle against U.S. and Iraqi forces in Al-Najaf. The heart operation a success, Sistani returned triumphantly to Al-Najaf in late August and concluded the confrontation by dramatically reining in Ṣadr and brokering a peace agreement where others had failed.

A broader contest of influence between Sistani and Ṣadr continued, however, and some of Sistani’s followers began to shift toward Ṣadr’s more militant approach. Sistani increasingly found himself marginalized as his calls for calm went unheeded and efforts to restrain his followers became more and more difficult. Rather than continue to endure being ignored, Sistani announced his withdrawal from the political scene. In spite of these challenges, however, it was clear that Sistani remained one of Iraq’s most powerful figures, and U.S. and Iraqi officials continued to seek his input on important matters.

The 2010s saw a number of crises that returned Sistani to the position of a political arbiter. Among the most significant situations were those that came in 2014 with the rise of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL; also called Islamic State in Iraq and Syria [ISIS]). In June Sistani called on Iraqis to join the fight against the militant group and pushed for the replacement of Prime Minister Nūrī al-Mālikī and his government. Thousands quickly joined the armed forces, and Mālikī resigned in August. In November 2019, after the Iraqi government responded with violence to widespread demonstrations over corruption and poor services, Sistani called for the resignation of the government, electoral reform, and early elections. Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi resigned later that month, and the parliament passed an electoral reform in December.