Iyad Jamal Al-Din
Encyclopedia
Ayad Jamal Aldin or Iyad Jamal al-Din (Arabic: إياد جمال الدين), full name Iyad Raouf Mohammed Jalal al-Din (Born 1961), is a prominent Iraqi intellectual, politician and religious cleric. He was a member of the Iraqi parliament from 2005 until 2010 as the representative of Nasiriyah
and a leading figure in Ayad Allawi's Iraqi National List (Iraqiyya)
until his departure in the fall of 2009. After Ayad Allawi sent a delegation to Iran, Ayad Jamal Aldin became disillusioned with Iraqiyya and left the list to form his own party, the Ahrar Party, based on the principles of separation of religion and the state (a principle Iraqiyya ostensibly shares), courage and integrity (principles Ayad Jamal Aldin and his followers feel strongly that Iraqiyya does not share). Speaking of his fallout with Ayad Allawi in a February 14, 2010 interview with Al-Arabiya TV's Suhair Al-Qaisi, the imam said:
Ayad Jamal Aldin is a young Shia cleric, best known for his consistent campaigning for a new, secular Iraq. He first rose to prominence at the Nasiriyah conference in March 2003, shortly before the fall of Saddam Hussein
, where he called for a state free of religion, the turban and other theological symbols. In 2005, he was elected as one of the 25 MPs on the Iraqi National List, but withdrew in 2009 after becoming disenchanted with Iyad Allawi
’s overtures to Iran
. He wants complete independence from Iranian interference in Iraq. He now leads the Ahrar party for the 2010 election to the Council of Representatives, on a policy platform to clean up corruption and create a strong, secure and liberated Iraq for the future.
He was born in Najaf
in 1961 which remains home for most of his family, although he now lives in Baghdad
. He has several brothers and sisters and his late father was a literary scholar, with over 50 books to his credit, and his uncle was a famous poet: Sayed Mustafa Jamal Aldin. Although he eventually trained as a cleric, he was brought up in an environment where science, culture, poetry and religion were studied hand-in-hand. That is where his belief that our problems are ‘human problems first’, and not Sunni or Turkmen
or Kurd
problems.
He is on record as saying that his mission is to see an end to the corruption that has seen politicians subvert religion to their own needs, and use their sects to determine their success.
His first public appearance was at the age of 16, when he protested against the state’s attempt to prevent other Shias from making a pilgrimage to Karbala
.
He paid for his protest with his freedom, being exiled to Syria
and later Iran, where he studied the Qu'ran and shari'a for eight years and earned his masters degree in Philosophy
. He is on record saying that he does not want a secular state in order to reduce the role of God
in people's lives; he wants to liberate religion from the state. He wants to see an end to the political sectarianism that puts Kurd against Shia and Turkmen against Sunni, believing that "we have a shared history, and we have a shared destiny." He has consistently argued that freedom, tolerance and security walk hand-in-hand.
He is the father of six children – three boys and three girls.
After Ahrar and other lists concerned about Iranian interference in Iraqi politics failed to gain a single seat in the 2010 elections, Ayad Jamal Aldin and the Ahrar Party released a press statement and sent letters to the U.N. declaring the presence of massive fraud in the elections and the need for a complete recount, which went ignored in light of the "relative" transparency of the elections.
Nasiriyah
Nasiriyah is a city in Iraq. It is on the Euphrates about 225 miles southeast of Baghdad, near the ruins of the ancient city of Ur. It is the capital of the province of Dhi Qar...
and a leading figure in Ayad Allawi's Iraqi National List (Iraqiyya)
Iraqi National List
The Iraqi National List is a coalition of Iraqi political parties who ran in the December 2005 Iraqi elections and got 8.0% of the vote and 25 out of 275 seats...
until his departure in the fall of 2009. After Ayad Allawi sent a delegation to Iran, Ayad Jamal Aldin became disillusioned with Iraqiyya and left the list to form his own party, the Ahrar Party, based on the principles of separation of religion and the state (a principle Iraqiyya ostensibly shares), courage and integrity (principles Ayad Jamal Aldin and his followers feel strongly that Iraqiyya does not share). Speaking of his fallout with Ayad Allawi in a February 14, 2010 interview with Al-Arabiya TV's Suhair Al-Qaisi, the imam said:
- Since he (Ayad Allawi) sent a delegation to Iran, he cannot expect my support.
Ayad Jamal Aldin is a young Shia cleric, best known for his consistent campaigning for a new, secular Iraq. He first rose to prominence at the Nasiriyah conference in March 2003, shortly before the fall of Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
, where he called for a state free of religion, the turban and other theological symbols. In 2005, he was elected as one of the 25 MPs on the Iraqi National List, but withdrew in 2009 after becoming disenchanted with Iyad Allawi
Iyad Allawi
Ayad Allawi is an Iraqi politician, and was the interim Prime Minister of Iraq prior to Iraq's 2005 legislative elections. A prominent Iraqi political activist who lived in exile for almost 30 years, the politically secular Shia Muslim became a member of the Iraq Interim Governing Council, which...
’s overtures to Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
. He wants complete independence from Iranian interference in Iraq. He now leads the Ahrar party for the 2010 election to the Council of Representatives, on a policy platform to clean up corruption and create a strong, secure and liberated Iraq for the future.
He was born in Najaf
Najaf
Najaf is a city in Iraq about 160 km south of Baghdad. Its estimated population in 2008 is 560,000 people. It is the capital of Najaf Governorate...
in 1961 which remains home for most of his family, although he now lives in Baghdad
Baghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
. He has several brothers and sisters and his late father was a literary scholar, with over 50 books to his credit, and his uncle was a famous poet: Sayed Mustafa Jamal Aldin. Although he eventually trained as a cleric, he was brought up in an environment where science, culture, poetry and religion were studied hand-in-hand. That is where his belief that our problems are ‘human problems first’, and not Sunni or Turkmen
Turkmen people
The Turkmen are a Turkic people located primarily in the Central Asian states of Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, and northeastern Iran. They speak the Turkmen language, which is classified as a part of the Western Oghuz branch of the Turkic languages family together with Turkish, Azerbaijani, Qashqai,...
or Kurd
Kurdish people
The Kurdish people, or Kurds , are an Iranian people native to the Middle East, mostly inhabiting a region known as Kurdistan, which includes adjacent parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey...
problems.
He is on record as saying that his mission is to see an end to the corruption that has seen politicians subvert religion to their own needs, and use their sects to determine their success.
His first public appearance was at the age of 16, when he protested against the state’s attempt to prevent other Shias from making a pilgrimage to Karbala
Karbala
Karbala is a city in Iraq, located about southwest of Baghdad. Karbala is the capital of Karbala Governorate, and has an estimated population of 572,300 people ....
.
He paid for his protest with his freedom, being exiled to Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
and later Iran, where he studied the Qu'ran and shari'a for eight years and earned his masters degree in Philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
. He is on record saying that he does not want a secular state in order to reduce the role of God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
in people's lives; he wants to liberate religion from the state. He wants to see an end to the political sectarianism that puts Kurd against Shia and Turkmen against Sunni, believing that "we have a shared history, and we have a shared destiny." He has consistently argued that freedom, tolerance and security walk hand-in-hand.
He is the father of six children – three boys and three girls.
After Ahrar and other lists concerned about Iranian interference in Iraqi politics failed to gain a single seat in the 2010 elections, Ayad Jamal Aldin and the Ahrar Party released a press statement and sent letters to the U.N. declaring the presence of massive fraud in the elections and the need for a complete recount, which went ignored in light of the "relative" transparency of the elections.