Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Taher bin Abdul-hameed bin Isa bin Hasan bin Shubayr bin Dhiab bin Mohammed bin Harb al-Khaqani (30 November 1911 - 28 January 1986) ( Arabic:اية الله العظمى الشيخ محمد طاهر بن عبدالحميد بن عيسى بن حسن بن شبير بن ذياب بن محمد بن حرب الخاقاني). He was a leading Iranian Arab

Shia Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political successor (caliph) and as the spiritual leader of the Muslim community (imam). However, his right is understood ...

cleric from

Ahwaz Ahvaz (; ) is a city in the Central District of Ahvaz County, Khuzestan province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is home to Persians, Arabs and other groups such as Qashqai and Kurds. Languages spok ...

. Khaqani was imprisoned after the 1979 Revolution in Iran for his opposition to the

velayat-e faqih The Guardianship of the Islamic Jurist (, also ''Velayat-e Faghih''; ) is a concept in Twelver Shia Islamic law which holds that until the reappearance of the "infallible Imam" (sometime before Judgement Day), the religious and social affairs ...

and his promotion of autonomy for the Ahwazi Arabs of Iran's

Khuzestan Khuzestan province () is one of the 31 Provinces of Iran. Located in the southwest of the country, the province borders Iraq and the Persian Gulf, covering an area of . Its capital is the city of Ahvaz. Since 2014, it has been part of Iran's ...

province. The Grand Ayatollah died in suspicious circumstances in 1986 while under house arrest in

Qom Qom (; ) is a city in the Central District of Qom County, Qom province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is the seventh largest metropolis and also the seventh largest city in Iran. The city is ...

. His son, Sheikh Mohammed Baqir al-Khaqani, today lives in

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

, and his younger brother Sheikh Isa Al-Khaqani lives in

Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...

.
Iran, The Revolution

References

Iranian Shia clerics 1986 deaths Ahwazi Arabs Prisoners and detainees of Iran Iranian Arab Islamic scholars 1911 births {{Shia-bio-stub