Investigation: Shiitization of Sunni Endowment Properties in Nineveh… The full story
By: Editorial team of NoonPost
The issue of Awqaf (endowments) in Iraq is one of the thorniest problems the country has been facing since 2003, as after the US invasion, the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) dissolved the Iraqi Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs (MERA) and replaced it with endowment bodies for each sect and religion, including the Sunni Endowment Office, the Office of Shia Endowment (OSHE), and an office of Christian affairs, etc.
With the escalation of the pace of the OSHE’s attempts to seize the endowment properties belonging to the Sunni Endowment Office in Nineveh Governorate and the city of Mosul, Noon Post seeks to find out the truth behind what is happening in Mosul and whether the OSHE has the right to seize the properties of the Sunni Endowment Office.
Laws separating the two sect’s endowments
The sharp conflicts between the Sunni and Shiite endowments have been intensifying after the OSHE accelerated the pace of attempts to seize properties and mosques belonging to the Sunni Endowment Office in Mosul. In this context, Legal Expert Yahya Hassan told Noon Post that the problem of endowments in Iraq was supposed to be solved since 2008 after the Council of Ministers issued a resolution in July 2008, and included several items that determine whether the endowments belong to the Sunna or the Shia.
Hassan added that among the provisions of the resolution is the adoption of the endowment argument that clarifies the endowment provider’s doctrine, as well as the reliance on the legitimate distributor of inheritance. He pointed out that the resolution also determined the affiliation of the ancient tombs based on the doctrine of those buried in them, and whether they are Sunnis or Shiites.
Hassan noted that Law No. (19) of 2005, which is adopted by the OSHE without taking into account the law of 2008, stipulates in its second article that the Shiite shrines are the buildings that include the tombs of Muslim ibn Aqil, Maytham al-Tammar, Kumayl ibn Ziyad, Muhammad ibn Ali al-Hadi, East Hamzah, West Hamzah, al-Qasim al-Hurr, Muslim ibn Aqil’s descendants, and other descendants of imams, their companions, and saints from Ahl al-Bayt doctrine in Iraq.
Hassan believes that OSHE relies on this law in its attempt to seize the mausoleums of imams and real estate belonging to them in Mosul, adding that this law was ambiguous and the law of 2008 explained the ambiguity of its provisions.
In the conclusion of his interview with Noon Post, Hassan pointed out that the OSHE is using the endorsement of the judiciary in its favor in the lawsuits it files to seize the endowment properties of Sunni Endowment Office across Iraq.
Backdrop of Crisis
The OSHE’s attempts to seize the property and mosques of the Sunni Endowment Office in Mosul date back to many years ago. In reality, the former Governor of Nineveh Governorate, Atheel al-Nujaifi, said in an exclusive interview with Noon Post that, in 2010, the OSHE tried to send an official letter to the Department of Real Estate Registration (right) in Mosul in order to register 20 shrines and mosques under Shiite Endowments and take down their ownership from the Sunni Endowment Office based on the resolution of the American Provisional Coalition Civilian Administrator of Iraq, Paul Bremer, to dissociate and insulate the two sects’ endowments.
Al-Nujaifi added that Bremer’s decision at the time included the phrase: “The ownership of every endowment under the name of Ahl al-Bayt or endowed by one Ahl al-Bayt members shall be given to the Shiite endowment,” indicating that the resolution was unfair to the Sunnis, as many Sunni scholars, preachers, and imams were from Ahl al-Bayt.
Al-Nujaifi explained that many of Mosul’s old and modern mosques bear the names of symbols and figures from Ahl al-Bayt, and revealed that after referring the resolution to the Provincial Council, the latter issued an order to stop the OSHE’s procedures and prevent the transfer of ownership of any endowment unless after verifying whether the OSHE is eligible to transfer the ownership or not.
Al-Nujaifi also told Noon Post that instead of challenging the resolution of the Provincial Council before the Federal Court, the OSHE filed a criminal case against him (Atheel al-Nujaifi) on the grounds that the governor caused the suspension of the OSHE’s record and turned the case into an investigation of integrity and accusing the governor of wasting the endowment funds. Al-Nujaifi stressed that the lawsuit was filed against him because he prevented the OSHE from seizing the properties of its Sunni counterpart and that the case lasted until 2017 following the issuance of a court verdict condemning him in absentia.
Regarding the OSHE’s renewed attempts to take over the endowments in Mosul, al-Nujaifi asserted at the end of his interview with Noon Post that the OSHE has no legal argument as every Sunni endowment has endowment evidence that shows the reasons for the endower’s provision of the endowment and his doctrine and conditions. But when referring back to this argument, this problem becomes null from the first place. The governor accused the current Nineveh Provincial Council of indifference to what is happening in Mosul for fear of political consequences, stressing that what is happening will increase sectarian complications in the city.
Violations after the restoration of Mosul from ISIS
The director of the Sunni Endowment Office in Mosul, Abu Bakr Kanaan, stressed in his interview with Noon Post that the violations committed against the Sunni Endowment Office’s properties, mosques, and real estate have been repeated after the restoration of Mosul from the control of ISIS, considering that the violations against the Sunni Endowment Office reflect a negative image of the situation in the city, which has just gone out from a devastating war.
Kanaan revealed that the Sunni Endowment Office in Nineveh received a letter from the OSHE, demanding the ownership of 17 tombs and shrines, based on the names of these shrines, all of which are located in the ancient city of Mosul, which has no Shiite inhabitants as everyone knows.
Commenting on the actions taken by the Endowment Office towards what is happening, Kanaan added that after several meetings with Nineveh Provincial Council, the latter issued a resolution to suspend all procedures until the verification of the arguments and evidences. However, the Provincial Council’s resolution has been applied only on the Sunni Endowment Office while turning a blind eye to the OSHE.
According to Kanaan, the series of violations committed against the Sunni Endowment Office in Mosul have started from the Mosque of Prophet Yunus PBUH and the cemetery on the left side of the city of Mosul last year. He pointed out that the OSHE offered the old cemetery for rent and it has been already rented to unknown persons.
Kanaan also revealed that the OSHE has been trying hard to seize several commercial buildings and shops in the old city, including commercial buildings in Bab al-Tob, al-Dawasah, Bab al-Saray, and the jewelry market, in addition to the tombs and shrines in the old city of Mosul.
Regarding the jewelry market and the OSHE’s attempts to seize it, Kanaan revealed that the market is part of the endowments of al-Hasan’s daughters. He clarified that it is a small mosque built dozens of years ago, but those who built it are a known family from Mosul, Chahidou al-Musli family, and the heirs still exist to confirm this. There is also the original endowment argument and the condition of the endowers who are Sunni Muslims in Mosul and not Shiites.
The director of the Sunni Endowment Office in Mosul expressed his fear of the seizure of the Sunni Endowment Office’s properties after receiving information about the OSHE’s intention to seize more real estate and mosques such as Suq al-Sijn and the ones bearing the names of Ahl al-Bayt. He pointed out that the weakness of the previous local government led to the incursion of the OSHE in Mosul.
Kanaan described the arguments the Office of Shia Endowment (OSHE) provided when seizing the Sunnis’ properties in Mosul as used and abused (like “Juha’s nail”), for there is not a single Shiite in the old city of Mosul. Kanaan was also wondering whether the Sunni Endowment Office could claim the endowment property in Najaf and Karbala.
At the end of his speech to Noon Post, Kanaan asserted that the problem lies in the Shiite Endowment reliance on Law No. (19) of 2005 without taking into account the 2008 law, whose articles have organized and explained all the procedures for the separation of properties of both endowments.
One of the tenants at the commercial building that the Shiite endowment is trying to take over in Dawasa declared: “After recovering Mosul, we resumed paying rent to the Sunni Endowment Office. We have signed rental contracts with the office, and we have been tenants in this building since 1961. However, we were surprised when four-wheel vehicles and gunmen wearing uniforms came to us and issued a legal warning from the notary in Mosul. They threatened us either to pay rent for the Shiite Endowment or we will be forcibly evicted from the building.” The tenant, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the Shiite Endowment told them that the building now belongs to them and that an investor rented the entire building.
In order to find out the truth about the charges against them, we had to contact the Shiite Endowment in the Governorate of Nineveh. The team of Noon Post managed to contact the head of the Shiite Endowment Office in Nineveh, Bassem al-Bayati, however, when the subject was raised, he refused to answer, saying he is not allowed to have any interviews with the media about this subject matter.
Islamic scholar, Muhammad al-Shammaa, claimed during an interview with Noon Post that the Shiite Endowment has no legal or religious argument allowing it to seize the properties and mosques of the Sunni endowment in the Governorate of Nineveh.
Al-Shammaa added that the arguments of the endowment invalidate all the claims of the Shiite Endowment, whether in Mosul or elsewhere. He pointed out that all the shrines the Shiite Endowment claims to belong to Ahl al-Bayt (the successor of the prophet Mohammed according to Shiite) have no origins or historical evidence. In 630 Hijri, Shiite leader Badr al-Din Lu’lu’ betrayed his master, Nur ad-Din Arslan, who was governor of Mosul during the time of the Atabeg Dynasty. He then converted the names of mosques and schools of Sunni Muslims (Shafi’i, Hanafi, and Maliki) to the names of the figures of Ahl al-Bayt in an attempt to spread Shiism in Mosul.
Referring to the local government and its Council’s reaction towards the Shiite Endowment attempts to seize the property of the Sunni Endowment in Mosul, Al-Shammaa stressed that the people of Mosul should not rely on the governor and the Council, for they will not contribute to solving this issue.
Warnings from the deteriorating security situation
Earlier this year, the Provincial Council of Nineveh ruled the Sunni and Shiite Endowment procedures to stop in order to verify the argument of both; however, the Shiite Endowment did not comply with the decision of the council. Noon Post sought to contact the member at the Provincial Council of Nineveh, Hussam Eddin al-Abbar, who said that the Shiite Endowment ignored the decision of the council and clearly tends to seize the property of the Sunni Endowment, taking advantage of the political situation in the governorate, to achieve this goal.
Al-Abbar revealed that a session of the Provincial Council will be held soon in order to deter violations of the Shiite Endowment and indifference to the decision of the Council, warning against the repercussions of the situation in Mosul which will increase sectarian tensions and lead to the decline of the security situation because of the actions of the Shiite Endowment.
Concluding the interview with Noon Post, al-Abbar insisted that the current Governor of Nineveh, Mansour al-Mar’eed, must take a clear and unambiguous stand towards the Shiite Endowment; otherwise, other parties will likewise commit violations. He pointed out that the people of Mosul have noticed the extent to which abuses were serious in the city; hence, the return of sectarian tension in the Governorate is probable.
As for the MP for the Governorate of Nineveh Sherwan Aldubardani, he called on the Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi to intervene immediately to deter the looting the outlawed armed militias are committing in Nineveh, in reference to the Shiite Endowment. He stressed that the MPs and citizens of Nineveh reject the abuses carried out by different parties and they will take a firm stance to confront such violations. During another interview, he declared that the fact-finding committee in Nineveh revealed a lot about the endowments, including cases of theft, oil smuggling, and the existence of economic offices run by the parties affiliated to the Popular Mobilization in the Governorate of Nineveh.
Shiite endowments’ takeover attempts in other provinces
Mosul is not the only governorate which is witnessing attempts by the Shiite endowments to seize Sunni endowments’ real estate and mosques. According to Al-Khaleej Online, the Shiite endowments have taken over several mosques in Baghdad, especially those located in strategic and commercial areas, such as the mosque of Al-Qazzaz in Zayouna neighborhood and Al-Saydiyah Mosque on 14 Ramadan Street in Al-Mansour neighborhood, central Baghdad.
According to the source, there are serious attempts to forge property documents of a number of mosques in Baghdad, Diyala, Samarra, Babylon, and Mosul in the real estate registration departments, and to transfer their ownership to the Shiite endowments.
It is noteworthy that the statistics of the Sunni endowments office in Baghdad alone indicated that there were about 3,500 mosques distributed on both sides of Karkh and Rusafa. However, this number has decreased significantly over the past years, as some mosques were destroyed or taken over by some of the militias affiliated to political parties. Other mosques were officially confiscated under the provisions of Law №19 of 2005, which requires the transfer of some of the Sunni Endowment’s properties to the Shiite Endowment according to the real estate’s name.
In Samarra, residents of the city complained about the Shiite Endowment’s seizure of the Sunni properties, in addition to closing the roads leading to the old city. As a result, Ahmed al-Karim, head of the Salahuddin Provincial Council, filed a lawsuit in February against the head of the Shiite Endowment Alaa al-Musawi and the Secretary-General of the holy military threshold, Sheikh Sattar al-Murshidi, accusing them of closing the old city of Samarra and causing serious damage to its inhabitants and their interests.
The lawsuit brought to the Samarra court pointed to the damage inflicted on the residents of Samarra after the Shiite Endowment closed the old city, which includes dozens of hotels and at least 2,500 shops.
