Ottoman

Abstract: Iraqi Shiites make up near 60 percent of the population live in the southern half of the country. However, they have been rarely in the circles of power throughout history and often under colonial domination of minorities that reached its peak during the rule of the Ba'ath Party. Thus, the Shiites were considered as an opposition through the history of Iraq, particularly after the World War I and the entry of Britain, although the intensity of the struggle varied according to different conditions. As noted, the Shiites who were in a weak position throughout the Iraq's history were able to gain significant influence on the structure of the Iraqi government and build a Shiite government due to changes in their country after 2003. The Shiites pursue their goals as Islamist parties and groups, and although they differ in many details of their goals, they are united in their general identity, Islam, and establishment of a Muslim community, and seek, in the light of reli-gious doctrines, giving meaning to future policies of their country. This research aims to investigate the Iraqi Shiites’ historical status from the era of Imam Ali (AS) until the fall of Saddam.

In the sixteenth century, the strategic region of the Caucasus had a set of political, economic, transportation, and religious benefits for both the Safavid and Ottoman governments that led the two powers to compete for profound influence and attention in the region. During this period, when some weak and unstable kings such as Ismail II and Muhammad Khudābanda came to power, lack of strength and better performance caused the Ottoman government to grasp the most of the opportunity to extend their influence over the Caucasus. This study aims at investigating the geographical location of the Caucasus considering the Safavid diplomatic policies and the challenges between the Safavids and the Ottoman Empire through analyzing historical data and library studies. Descriptive data analysis has been considered as the method utilized for this research. The research findings indicate that the ineffectiveness of Safavid foreign policy at this time and the consequence of this policy would have an inevitably negative impact on maintaining and controlling the Caucasus. As a result, this policy would provoke the Ottoman invasions, leading to the occupation of some parts of the Caucasus.

Art and literature have always been applied as a favorite way of conveying human experiences through centuries to next generations. However, sometimes they have been not used as art for art’s sake. Utilitarian literature and art have usually been abused to misrepresent facts and real human history. World War I was a catastrophic disaster for the whole world, especially for the Muslim people living in the Ottoman empire territory and neighboring regions. Since then the separated small countries have been suffering periodical catastrophes afterword. Literature and art, consequently, were affected by them. According to the attitude of the literary figures and artists toward those historical experiences and human sufferings, their productions have tried to be effective on the world’s attitude toward those events. Ararat is one of them. It is an Armenian movie that was produced in Canada and won 2003’s Canadian Film Festival first prize. The main character of this movie is an Armenian young boy who travels to the city of Van in Türkiye and remember his nation’s past experiences during World War I in the city, according to the producers’ point of view. The main episodes are the flashbacks to the war between Armenian people and Turkic troops in Van through which war crimes are depicted to arouse the audience’s hatred toward Turks in the world. The film producers have inefficiently tried to produce a show through which make the world believe that there has been a genocide by Turkic troops against Armenian people living in the region during World War I. While western world is trying to condemn all hate speeches toward other races, ethnicities and nations around the world, the production of such a film in a country which obviously declares herself as one the most democratic countries in the world does not seem so appropriate to their democratic slogans. Through this essay the researcher will try to analyze it and depict some facts that the producers have tried to misrepresent. Because it is a movie that has dealt with the relationship between the Ottoman Empire and the Armenians living in the territory before World War I.