Umayyad forces of Caliph Yazid I killed Husayn ibn Ali and most of his small retinue at Karbala. The event became a foundational Shiʿite trauma and a major catalyst for organized pro-Alid opposition to Umayyad rule.
In the aftermath of Karbala, a Kufan pro-Alid current organized around repentance for failing to aid Husayn. This Tawwabun ("Penitents") mobilization illustrates early Shiʿite political organization under Umayyad pressure.
The Tawwabun force met an Umayyad army at Ayn al-Warda (Ra's al-Ayn) and was defeated; key leaders were killed. Survivors and the memory of the defeat fed later Shiʿite revolutionary activity in Iraq.
Al-Mukhtar ibn Abi ʿUbayd led a pro-Shiʿite uprising centered in Kufa, presenting Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah (a son of Ali) as a divinely guided leader and pursuing vengeance against perpetrators of Karbala. The revolt broadened Shiʿite politics by mobilizing non-Arab converts (mawali) alongside Arab tribal supporters.
Mukhtar’s forces beat an Umayyad army at the Khazir River, a major battlefield success that temporarily strengthened pro-Alid leverage in Iraq during the Second Fitna.
The Najdat—an influential Kharijite current—built a breakaway polity in central and eastern Arabia during the Second Fitna. Its rise shows how sectarian opposition could translate into territorial control outside Umayyad Syria.
Mukhtar was defeated and killed in Kufa, ending his brief revolutionary state. His movement nonetheless left durable legacies in Shiʿite messianic expectations and in the politics of loyalty to the Prophet’s family.
An inscription dates the Dome of the Rock’s construction to AH 72 (691–692 CE), generally taken as its completion. The shrine’s prominent Qurʾanic proclamations and monumental Umayyad patronage are widely interpreted as part of a broader effort to define imperial Islamic authority amid civil war and dissent.
Umayyad forces under al-Hajjaj besieged Mecca and killed Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr, reuniting the caliphate under Abd al-Malik. The victory enabled intensified suppression of remaining revolts, including Kharijite resistance, and consolidated Marwanid Umayyad rule.
Shabib ibn Yazid al-Shaybani led a Kharijite rebellion in central Iraq (696–697/698), repeatedly engaging Umayyad forces. The revolt underscores continuing Kharijite capacity for insurgency even after major Second Fitna alignments collapsed.
After years of fighting, al-Muhallab ibn Abi Sufra—backed by Umayyad authority and later al-Hajjaj—delivered a decisive defeat to the radical Azariqa Kharijites (associated with leaders like Qatari ibn al-Fujaʿa). This marked a key stage in breaking large-scale Kharijite military power in the east.
A major Iraqi-led rebellion broke out against the powerful Umayyad governor al-Hajjaj. Although not itself a Shiʿite or Kharijite movement, it shows the broader Iraqi opposition environment in which sectarian currents operated and in which Umayyad coercive governance intensified.
Umayyad forces crushed the core of the Ibn al-Ashʿath rebellion near Kufa (September 701 per Britannica). The defeat further strengthened Syrian-backed Umayyad control over Iraq, narrowing space for subsequent opposition mobilization.
Zayd ibn Ali rose in Kufa against Umayyad authority, a pivotal episode for later Zaydi Shiʿism. The uprising’s failure highlighted persistent Umayyad ability to suppress Alid-led challenges while also demonstrating the ongoing appeal of pro-Alid revolt traditions in Iraq.
Amid Umayyad succession crises, al-Dahhak ibn Qays al-Shaybani led a widespread Kharijite rebellion in Iraq (745–746). It represents the re-emergence of large-scale Kharijite political-military action late in Umayyad history.
The Abbasid revolution opened with Abu Muslim’s revolt in Khurasan (dated 9 June 747 in many chronologies), drawing on broad anti-Umayyad coalitions that included currents shaped by earlier sectarian conflicts. The movement’s success culminated in the Umayyad dynasty’s overthrow in 750.
Religious Policies and Sectarian Conflict: Shiʿite and Kharijite Opposition (680–750)
