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This article analyses relations among the Ottoman Empire, British imperialism and Shia religious proto-nationalism in the period before and after the battle of Sha’iba of 1915, one of the pivotal engagements of the Mesopotamian campaign. It illustrates how the narrow victory of the British at the battle led them to draw a number of over-optimistic conclusions regarding their role in Iraq and their ability to co-opt the Arabs of the province against their ‘Turkish’ overlords. The victory at Sha’iba and in particular the ambivalent role played by a number of the Arab mujahidin volunteers led the British to conclude that there had never been any real enthusiasm for the jihad declared by the Ottomans against the British occupiers. However, this was based on the false perception that lack of commitment to Ottomanism could be equated with sympathy for British imperialism. In particular, the British failed to recognise that the Ottoman summons to jihad had strengthened the developing forms of Shia proto-nationalist consciousness led by various mujtahids influenced by the Iranian Constitutional Revolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the relationship between devout Iranian Shi'a in London and an intra-diasporic secularism referred to as ‘non-Islamiosity’—a discourse, sensibility and mode of practice through which some London Iranians construct, experience and live diasporic identity, community and consciousness in a way that marginalises, excludes or eradicates (only) Islam. It is argued that intra-diasporic relations of power vis-à-vis Islam and non-Islamiosity play a pivotal role in shaping the sensibilities and religious experience of devout Iranian Shi'a, for many of whom ‘real life’, to a significant degree, takes place within the diaspora. These Muslims are incapable of ‘othering’ non-Islamiosity in the same way that they can distance themselves from ‘British society’, due to the fact that they have an emotional, moral and political stake in the Iranian diaspora. Thus, they are drawn into a relationship in which they see little choice but—as they describe it—to make concessions to non-Islamiosity. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

While Shi'a Muslims remain in the minority in Europe, including within universities, the past decade has witnessed the growing profile of Shi'ism on university campuses, especially in Britain. In particular, there has been an emphasis on campaigns that prioritise notions of justice, equality, and human rights. Drawing on interviews and ethnographic fieldwork conducted amongst Twelver Shi'a students in Britain between 2013–2018, this paper examines the forms of Shi'a activism currently being articulated on university campuses, especially those that explicitly seek to engage non-Muslims and spread awareness about Shi'a Islam. On the one hand, such practices constitute a form of self-representation for Shi'a students who would otherwise feel marginalised within the university space; while on the other, they promote a particular version of Shi'a Islam that both frames it within the European context and that also contributes to the sectarianisation of the contemporary Shi'a subject. While the forms and resonance of Shi'a student activism arguably only have meaning within the context of contemporary Europe, we argue that the discursive contours underpinning such activism ultimately transcend such national and cultural boundaries and contribute to a reinterpretation and reimagining of Shi'a sectarian identity for the modern age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]