Lebanon: The missing Imam

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The Shiite Muslim community of Lebanon was on Friday marking the 34th anniversary of the disappearance of its erstwhile spiritual leader, Imam Musa Sadr, after a remarkable claim by the country’s foreign minister that he is still alive.

The Iranian-born cleric has not been seen since he went missing on a 1978 visit to Libya as a guest of Muammar al-Qaddafi. He and two companions are widely believed to have been murdered on the orders of the Libyan leader, either for political motives or as a result of a theological dispute that got out of hand.

But on Tuesday, Adnan Mansour, Lebanon’s Shiite foreign minister and a member of the pro-Syrian Amal party, said in an interview that the imam was still alive and would soon be released.

Mr. Mansour made the comments while attending a summit of the Non-Aligned Movement in Tehran, where he previously served as his country’s ambassador.

He is not the first to suggest that Musa Sadr was kept alive by the Qaddafi regime in the years since his disappearance. However, the timing of his intervention raises the question: why now?

Musa Sadr, who would now be 84, remains a potent figure more than three decades after his disappearance. And Friday’s ceremonies to commemorate him coincide with rising tensions within Lebanon over events in neighbouring Syria.

As Josh Wood reported from Beirut this week, the spillover from the civil war in Syria increasingly threatens Lebanon’s stability.

Lebanon’s powerful Hezbollah movement and the more secular Amal, founded by Musa Sadr, are traditional allies of the Assad regime in Damascus, which is battling a predominantly Sunni rebellion.

Hannan Ghaddar questioned in an IHT Global Opinion article this week whether Hezbollah could survive the collapse of the Bashar al-Assad regime.

“Hezbollah, long Syria’s powerful proxy in Lebanon, has become a wounded beast,” she wrote. “And it is walking a very thin line between protecting its assets and aiding a crumbling regime next door.”

In a separate article this week, Ms. Ghaddar, the editor of NOW Lebanon, said Nabih Berri, the long-time leader of Amal and the Shiite speaker of the Lebanese parliament, was already distancing himself from the Damascus regime.

Ms. Ghaddar said Mr. Berri was detested by Hezbollah, Amal’s ostensible ally, and faced a double threat to his survival if the Assad regime fell. “When Assad goes, Hezbollah will try its best to hold on to Lebanon, under full Iranian influence this time. Without Assad, what is Berri going to do?”

One option, in a battle for the hearts and minds of the Shiite community, might be to revive the memory of Lebanon’s missing imam, revered by both Amal and Hizbollah.

Musa Sadr’s reputation is as a moderate and a conciliator who helped awaken the consciousness of the economically and socially marginalized Shiites. He disappeared just months before Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini led the Iranian revolution that overthrew the Shah. Ayatollah Khomeini went on to sponsor the rise of Hezbollah to confront the Israeli occupation of southern Lebanon.

The memory of the charismatic Musa Sadr resonates among Shiites, whose faith includes a belief that their 12th imam has been hidden for more than a thousand years and will return to bring justice to the world.

As every year, Amal activists were busy erecting posters of Musa Sadr — alongside posters of Mr. Berri — to mark Friday’s anniversary. With the future of Syria uncertain, some suggest there is a greater motivation this time to reinforce the link.

“Nabih Berri risks losing his connections and he may have to challenge Hezbollah as leader of the Shia community,” Franklin Lamb, an international lawyer undertaking research in Lebanon, told Rendezvous. “That’s why he’s wrapping himself tighter in the mantle of Musa Sadr.”

Dr. Lamb suggested in an article in Counterpunch in June that it was more useful for certain elements within Lebanese politics to maintain the mystery surrounding Musa Sadr rather than have him pronounced dead.

“Why after nearly a year into the post-Qaddafi period was the case not solved with help from Lebanon despite several trips by officials allegedly for the purpose?” he wrote. “Is it because some Lebanese politicians do not want the truth to be known?”

There is broad consensus that the imam died sometime after his abduction by the Libyan regime. An indictment that Lebanese authorities issued against Col. Qaddafi held him responsible for Musa Sadr’s disappearance.

A definitive answer will likely depend on DNA results from remains that Libya’s new authorities believe may be those of the missing imam. Until then, the mystery and the myth will endure.

NY Times

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39 responses to “Lebanon: The missing Imam”

  1. 5thDrawer Avatar
    5thDrawer

    Holy Crap! Please put the guy in a history book and keep him out of ‘news’. Are they trying to make him into a saint??
    The guy with curly Irish hair was killed by a dead guy. That’s it.

    1.  What a lowlife comment, This man was the one who stopped the Shia from fighting the Christians in Lebanon and stopped Muslims from boycotting Christian businesses. You cannot criticize this man because he was one of the most humble and loved men in Lebanon’s entire existence.

    2. Hi 5th,
      I remember Sadr when I was young kneeling in the church with his hands open wide praying as if he were on the cross. He was a very good guy specially when compared to those morons running Lebanon today. I have nothing but respect for the man.

      1. there is a story about him that i have been told by someone that was present…a christian man in sidon had a restaurant and he wasnt doing very well…he went up to sadr and asked him if the reason he wasnt doing well was because he was christian? sadr told him not to worry and you will be ok…that day sadr rounded up about 60 men and he told them to meet at his restaruant for lunch…they all went in for everyone to see and had lunch there and did so regularly from then on….from that day on this mans rstaurant blossomed and ALL came in regularly…just an example of breaking barriers…..

        1. Sadr was a good man… I hope he is still alive to bring some sense back to HA.

      2. hannihabal Avatar

        this hypocrite sissy hannibaghl wants us now to believe he is a christian, he is not missing an occasion to stress the fact he is christian and i bet he is as much christian as i am chinese, for evident things do not need to be stressed nor repeated; dont we brag wat we lack most? however i am sure this sissy is now gonna start to whine and cry, zey r attacking me instead of attacking my ideas. LOL where r your ideas? u got none, or as many as u got ballz and we already proved u got no ballz. or maybe as much as u got brainz, lol u understand the rest of the rhetoric. well if u have ideas, ballz or brainz, then u r very good at hiding zem; indeed u r hiding zem well, unless u think every time a baghl (mule) brays, it is an idea. maybe u understand braying of mules and believe they make some sense; anyhow i believe mules and donkeys make much more sense than u do and r certainly more intelligent and cute zan u. allah wa akbar

        1. This is the last reply you will get from me. I do not want to waste my time debating an illiterate child behind a keyboard. I never told you I was a Christian. I was born Maronite and became an agnostic. It took time for me to come to my beliefs and it was not easy to shed what I was taught as a child. But I did and I am glad I did. Some of us mature and stop believing in Santa Claus whereas some like you wait for him (or for a Mahdi in your case) throughout adulthood as they never mature. I won’t lower myself to your level. You are an eben azeqqa like your father and his father before him. Go mutilate yourself on 3ashuura as I watch you over my Satellite dish while munching popcorn and laughing at your ridiculous culture. Good Bye Persian.

    3. Hi 5th,
      I remember Sadr when I was young kneeling in the church with his hands open wide praying as if he were on the cross. He was a very good guy specially when compared to those morons running Lebanon today. I have nothing but respect for the man.

      1. there is a story about him that i have been told by someone that was present…a christian man in sidon had a restaurant and he wasnt doing very well…he went up to sadr and asked him if the reason he wasnt doing well was because he was christian? sadr told him not to worry and you will be ok…that day sadr rounded up about 60 men and he told them to meet at his restaruant for lunch…they all went in for everyone to see and had lunch there and did so regularly from then on….from that day on this mans rstaurant blossomed and ALL came in regularly…just an example of breaking barriers…..

        1. Sadr was a good man… I hope he is still alive to bring some sense back to HA.

      2. hannihabal Avatar

        this hypocrite sissy hannibaghl wants us now to believe he is a christian, he is not missing an occasion to stress the fact he is christian and i bet he is as much christian as i am chinese, for evident things do not need to be stressed nor repeated; dont we brag wat we lack most? however i am sure this sissy is now gonna start to whine and cry, zey r attacking me instead of attacking my ideas. LOL where r your ideas? u got none, or as many as u got ballz and we already proved u got no ballz. or maybe as much as u got brainz, lol u understand the rest of the rhetoric. well if u have ideas, ballz or brainz, then u r very good at hiding zem; indeed u r hiding zem well, unless u think every time a baghl (mule) brays, it is an idea. maybe u understand braying of mules and believe they make some sense; anyhow i believe mules and donkeys make much more sense than u do and r certainly more intelligent and cute zan u. allah wa akbar

        1. This is the last reply you will get from me. I do not want to waste my time debating an illiterate child behind a keyboard. I never told you I was a Christian. I was born Maronite and became an agnostic. It took time for me to come to my beliefs and it was not easy to shed what I was taught as a child. But I did and I am glad I did. Some of us mature and stop believing in Santa Claus whereas some like you wait for him (or for a Mahdi in your case) throughout adulthood as they never mature. I won’t lower myself to your level. You are an eben azeqqa like your father and his father before him. Go mutilate yourself on 3ashuura as I watch you over my Satellite dish while munching popcorn and laughing at your ridiculous culture. Good Bye Persian.

    4. there is a story about him that i have been told by someone that was present…a christian man in sidon had a restaurant and he wasnt doing very well…he went up to sadr and asked him if the reason he wasnt doing well was because he was christian? sadr told him not to worry and you will be ok…that day sadr rounded up about 60 men and he told them to meet at his restaruant for lunch…they all went in for everyone to see and had lunch there and did so regularly from then on….from that day on this mans rstaurant blossomed and ALL came in regularly…just an example of breaking barriers…..

  2. 5thDrawer Avatar
    5thDrawer

    Holy Crap! Please put the guy in a history book and keep him out of ‘news’. Are they trying to make him into a saint??

    1.  What a lowlife comment, This man was the one who stopped the Shia from fighting the Christians in Lebanon and stopped Muslims from boycotting Christian businesses. You cannot criticize this man because he was one of the most humble and loved men in Lebanon’s entire existence.

    2. Hi 5th,
      I remember Sadr when I was young kneeling in the church with his hands open wide praying as if he were on the cross. He was a very good guy specially when compared to those morons running Lebanon today. I have nothing but respect for the man.

      1. there is a story about him that i have been told by someone that was present…a christian man in sidon had a restaurant and he wasnt doing very well…he went up to sadr and asked him if the reason he wasnt doing well was because he was christian? sadr told him not to worry and you will be ok…that day sadr rounded up about 60 men and he told them to meet at his restaruant for lunch…they all went in for everyone to see and had lunch there and did so regularly from then on….from that day on this mans rstaurant blossomed and ALL came in regularly…just an example of breaking barriers…..

        1. Sadr was a good man… I hope he is still alive to bring some sense back to HA.

      2. hannihabal Avatar

        this hypocrite hannibaghl wants us now to believe he is a christian, he is not missing an occasion to stress the fact he is christian and i bet he is as much christian as i am chinese, for evident things do not need to be stressed nor repeated; dont we brag wat we lack most? however i am sure this sissy is now gonna start to whine and cry, zey r attacking me instead of attacking my ideas. LOL where r your ideas? u got none, or as many as u got ballz and we already proved to u u got no ballz. or maybe as much as u got brainz, lol u understand the rest of the rhetoric. well if u have ideas, ballz or brainz, then u r very good at hiding zem; indeed u r hiding zem well, unless u think every time a baghl (mule) brays, it is an idea. maybe u understand braying of mules and believe they make some sense; anyhow i believe mules and donkeys make much more sense than u do and r certainly more cute zan u. allah wa akbar

        1. This is the last reply you will get from me. I do not want to waste my time debating an illiterate child behind a keyboard. I never told you I was a Christian. I was born Maronite and became an agnostic. It took time for me to come to my beliefs and it was not easy to shed what I was taught as a child. But I did and I am glad I did. Some of us mature and stop believing in Santa Claus whereas some like you wait for him (or for a Mahdi in your case) throughout adulthood as they never mature. I won’t lower myself to your level. You are an eben azeqqa like your father and his father before him. Go mutilate yourself on 3ashuura as I watch you over my Satellite dish while munching popcorn and laughing at your ridiculous culture. Good Bye Persian.

    3. there is a story about him that i have been told by someone that was present…a christian man in sidon had a restaurant and he wasnt doing very well…he went up to sadr and asked him if the reason he wasnt doing well was because he was christian? sadr told him not to worry and you will be ok…that day sadr rounded up about 60 men and he told them to meet at his restaruant for lunch…they all went in for everyone to see and had lunch there and did so regularly from then on….from that day on this mans rstaurant blossomed and ALL came in regularly…just an example of breaking barriers…..

  3. Imam mussa sadr was too charismatic to be kept alive while  the sham british backed islamic revilution in Iran was taking its root . He had to be eliminated . He would have become a true Shiite cult figure . He had to be taken care of . His elimination  was a joint operation by the C I A /M I 6 mullahs of Iran and the Lybian security apparatus jointly took care of him  .His last destination was presumably  the acid pool which dissolved his body for good

  4. Imam mussa sadr was too charismatic to be kept alive while  the sham british backed islamic revilution in Iran was taking its root . He had to be eliminated . He would have become a true Shiite cult figure . He had to be taken care of . His elimination  was a joint operation by the C I A /M I 6 mullahs of Iran and the Lybian security apparatus jointly took care of him  .His last destination was presumably  the acid pool which dissolved his body for good

  5. LEBANON101 Avatar

    if was still around there would have never been a hizballah

    1. So very true…

    2. So very true…

  6. LEBANON101 Avatar

    if was still around there would have never been a hizballah

  7. @yalibnan:disqus I believe this person Hannihabal is not contributing at all to this forum. He goes around personally attacking people all the time. I know that if you ban him he will spurt out again with another name like some cancer. I also know you guys are mostly volunteers and do not have time for policing this. See what you can do with this. Thank you for an informative site.

    1. hannihabal Avatar

      sissy whining, u attack beoble and u run crying like a small khanzeer; darabni wbaka saba”ni wa ishtaka. next time learn to respect beoble. let it be a lesson for u

    2. MeYosemite Avatar

      Sometimes is best when there is no value in a venue, is not worth spending time on it. blogging has a nature of being an entertainment venue, and once in a while, educational. When the later is not there and the entertainment element is exhusberating, best to skip over it. Often on many forums, some are paid for blogging, but hard to tell who is who and the true motive.

  8. @yalibnan:disqus I believe this person Hannihabal is not contributing at all to this forum. He goes around personally attacking people all the time. I know that if you ban him he will spurt out again with another name like some cancer. I also know you guys are mostly volunteers and do not have time for policing this. See what you can do with this. Thank you for an informative site.

    1. hannihabal Avatar

      sissy whining, u attack beoble and u run crying like a small khanzeer; darabni wbaka saba”ni wa ishtaka. next time learn to respect beoble. let it be a lesson for u

    2. MeYosemite Avatar

      Sometimes is best when there is no value in a venue, is not worth spending time on it. blogging has a nature of being an entertainment venue, and once in a while, educational. When the later is not there and the entertainment element is exhusberating, best to skip over it. Often on many forums, some are paid for blogging, but hard to tell who is who and the true motive.

    3. hannihabal Avatar

      maybe u r paranoid and believe beoble r attacking u because u got no ideas only insults; give us ideas and we will c if zey need to be criticised or not; who knows we might agree wiz your ideas in the improbable situation where zey r intelligent. but your broblem wiz ideas is similar to david, a notorious yahoodi, he keeps on braying his god or moses to win the lotto; and he never won the lotto; still every week david talks to moses or his god and brays: y u dont make me win ze lotto!!!!. finally god got angry and told david: look david, if u want me to make u win ze lotto, at least blay lotto!!!!. so if u want us to criticise your ideas and not u, at least brovide us wiz some ideas razer zan insulting us left and right. wa kad “ou3zira man anzara. allah wa akbar

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