Erdogan commemorates martyrdom of Imam al-Hussein

By Enes Kaplan and Yasemin Kalyoncuoglu

ANKARA

Turkish president on Thursday commemorated the anniversary of the martyrdom of Imam Al-Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad who was killed at the Battle of Karbala.

In a series of Tweets, Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that the Battle of Karbala reminds every year the need of unity among Muslims.

Erdogan called for the unity, togetherness, and brotherhood of the Muslim world.

Muslims consider the month of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic year, one of the year’s holiest months, as many landmark events in Islamic history took place in Muharram.

Today is the 10th day of Muharram -- the first month in the Islamic calendar -- when Shia Muslims mark Hussein’s death on the Day of Ashura.

Al-Hussein, along with 72 loyal companions, was killed at the infamous Battle of Karbala in the year 680 AD (year 61 on the Islamic calendar) by the forces of Umayyad Caliph Yazid I.