Abu Yassin: The Human Being, the Word, and the Stance

Dr. Qasim Daoud

Izz al‑Din Salim, Abu Yassin, Abdul Zahra Uthman Mohammed – one national title, one name that stored within it the characteristics of the word, the stance, and the Iraqi project that appeared on the tongue of this great thinker during his time in the Interim Governing Council and in the five decades before that date, which the late martyr spent between exiles, pursuit, threats, and finally assassination at the gates of the Green Zone.

His red martyrdom is what gave the Green Zone the radiance of the image and brought it out from the window of a closed security and military zone into the circle of the martyrdom of this armed kind of men.

Abu Yassin believed in the unity of the Iraqi opposition when he was an opposition figure, and in the unity of the national political stance, and in the necessity of being one in the Governing Council when the regime fell and that political formula was formed – just as he believed in the human being as an entity filled with dignity and freedom. Hence, Abu Yassin was a martyr of dignity, just as he dedicated himself from the very beginnings – in the 1960s of the last century in Iraq's history – to the human being, his dignity, his independence, and his freedom. He would often express in his words, sermons, and books that God calls for the establishment of the state of the human being, so that he may enjoy the origin of human existence and dignity, and arm himself with liberation from the captivity of servitude to anyone other than God Almighty.

We lived alongside the great martyr Abu Yassin, and we saw nothing from him but goodness, pure patriotism, and continuous work to entrench comprehensive national identity. We only ever saw him in this elevated position, in which we read the features of a man who believed in his people and in their ability to overcome various existential challenges.

Abu Yassin was Gandhi‑like in his inclination concerning the idea of building the state and confronting violence. He never called for the use of counter‑violence when car bombs were doing their destructive work in the street, in kindergartens, in holy places, and in the shrines of holy men and women. He only confronted that with patience in the face of hardships, re‑examining education on the basis of Islam and the idea of citizenship, and affirming the rightfulness of a democratic system in managing Iraqi life after phases of oppression, tyranny, injustice, and mass graves. He would call for confronting the sword with the word, and the swordsman with a discourse that said: "You are worthier of yourselves than they are?!"

A deep reading of the thought of this Godly man and sincere Iraqi politician confirms that the diversity he presented in his works – more than 50 books on thought, history, women, Islam, and various issues of political jurisprudence – were the primary features of his personality. They were reflected in his proposals and had a great impact on a generation of his followers, lovers, and adherents.

A man as sincere to his country as Izz al‑Din...