Sunni Islam ( or ) or Sunnism ( or ) is the largest branch of Islam;. Sunni Muslims are referred to in Arabic as ''ʾAhl ūs-Sunnah wa āl-Ǧamāʿah'' (, "people of the tradition [of Muhammad] and the community") or ''ʾAhl ūs-Sunnah'' () for short; in English, they are known as Sunnis or Sunnites.

Sunni Islam is referred to as the orthodox version of the religion. The word "Sunni" comes from the term ''Sunnah'' (), which refers to the sayings and actions of Muhammad that are recorded in hadiths (collections of narrations regarding Muhammad). Sunni Muslims generally consider ''Sahih al-Bukhari'' and ''Sahih Muslim'' to be entirely authentic and accurate hadiths.

Etymology

Sunni is a broad term derived from ''Sunnah'' , plural سنن ''sunan'' )}}, which is an Arabic word that means "habit" or "usual practice". The Muslim usage of this term refers to the sayings and living habits of Muhammad. In its full form, this branch of Islam is referred to as "Ahlus-Sunnah Wa Al-Jama'ah" (literally, "People of the Tradition and the Congregation"). Anyone claiming to follow the Sunnah and can show that they have no action or belief against the Prophetic Sunnah can consider him or herself to be a Sunni Muslim. However, it should be noted that Shi'a Muslims also hold that they follow the Sunnah.

Schools of law (''Madh'hab'')

Islamic law is known as the ''Sharī'ah''. The Sharī'ah is based on the ''Qur'an'' and the ''Sunnah''. The Madh'hab translates to "way", and different Madhaheb (plural of Madh'hab) reflect different opinions on some laws and obligations of the sharia, for example when one ''Madh'hab'' sees a certain act as an obligation, while the other does not. It has to be clear that each one of these schools consider the others to be fully valid and accepted.

Below are the most famous four:

Hanafi School

Abu Hanifah (died 767), was the founder of the Hanafi school and student of Ja'far al-Sadiq. He was born in the year 702 CE in Kufa, Iraq. Muslims of Bangladesh, Pakistan, India, Afghanistan, Central Asia, the Muslim areas of Southern Russia, the Caucasus, most of the Muslim areas of the Balkans and Turkey and parts of Iraq, all follow this school of jurisprudence. It is also the dominant school of Muslims in the United Kingdom and Germany.

Maliki School

Malik ibn Anas (died 795) Student of the imam Abu Hanifah's eldest student, Muhammad, Malik ibn Anas developed his ideas in Medina. His doctrine is recorded in the Muwatta which has been adopted by most North African and West African countries like Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Nigeria and others except Egypt, Horn of Africa and Sudan. Also, the Maliki madhab is the official state madhhab of Kuwait, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates. He was one of the teachers of Imam al-Shafi'i. One of greatest historical centers of Maliki teaching, especially during the ninth, tenth and eleventh centuries, is the Mosque of Uqba also known as the Great Mosque of Kairouan (in Tunisia).

Shafi'i school

Muhammad ibn Idris ash-Shafi`i (died 820 CE) was a student of Malik. He taught in Iraq and then in Egypt. Muslims in Indonesia, Lower Egypt, Malaysia, Southern Philippines, Brunei, Singapore, Somalia, Kenya, Tanzania, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Coastal Maharashtra/Konkan and Kerala in India, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Palestine, Yemen and Kurds in the Kurdish regions follow the Shafi'i school. Al-Shafi'i placed great emphasis on the Sunnah of Muhammad, as embodied in the Hadith, as a source of the Shari'ah.

Hanbali School

Ahmad bin Hanbal (died 855), the namesake of the Hanbali school, was born in Baghdad. He learned extensively from al-Shafi'i. This school of jurisprudence is followed predominantly in the Arabian Peninsula.

Theology of the four Madhab

The followers of these four schools follow the same basic belief system but differ from one another in terms of practice and execution of rituals, and in juristic interpretation of "divine principles" (or Shariah) as envisaged in Quran and Hadith. However Sunni Muslims consider them all equally valid.

There are other Sunni schools of law. However, many are followed by only small numbers of people and are relatively unknown due to the popularity of the four major schools; also, many have died out or were not sufficiently recorded by their followers to survive.

Interpreting the ''Shari'ah'' to derive specific rulings (such as how to pray) is known as ''fiqh,'' which literally means understanding. A ''madh'hab'' is a particular tradition of interpreting ''fiqh.'' These schools focus on specific evidence (Shafi'i and Hanbali) or general principles (Hanafi and Maliki) derived from specific evidences. The schools were started by eminent Muslim scholars in the first four centuries of Islam. As these schools represent clearly spelled out methodologies for interpreting the ''Shari'aa,'' there has been little change in the methodology per se. However, as the social and economic environment changes, new ''fiqh'' rulings are being made. For example, when tobacco appeared it was declared as 'disliked' because of its smell. When medical information showed that smoking was dangerous, that ruling was changed to 'forbidden'. Current ''fiqh'' issues include things like downloading pirated software and cloning. The consensus is that the ''Shari'ah'' does not change but ''fiqh'' rulings change all the time.

A ''madh'hab'' is not to be confused with a religious sect. There may be scholars representing all four ''madh'habs'' living in larger Muslim communities, and it is up to those who consult them to decide which school they prefer.

Demographics

The vast majority (approximately 80-90%) of Muslims worldwide practice Sunni Islam. The remaining are Shia along with other smaller groups.

Sunni theological traditions

Some Islamic scholars faced questions that they felt were not explicitly answered in the ''Qur'an'', especially questions with regard to philosophical conundra like the nature of God, the existence of human free will, or the eternal existence of the ''Qur'an.'' Various schools of theology and philosophy developed to answer these questions, each claiming to be true to the ''Qur'an'' and the Muslim tradition (''sunnah''). Among Sunnites, the following were the dominant traditions:

Athari (Arabic: أثري), or "textualism", is derived from the Arabic word athar, literally meaning "remnant", and also referring to "narrations". Their disciples are called the Atharis. The Atharis are considered to be one of three Sunni schools of Aqidah: Athari, Ashari, and Maturidi.

* The Athari methodology of textual interpretation is to avoid delving into extensive theological speculation. They believe in Allah and his attributes in the exact fashion that they were mentioned in the Quran, the Sunnah, and by the Sahabah. They do not attempt to further interpret the aforementioned texts by giving a literal meaning like in Ẓāhirīya (literalism) or the Tashbih (simile or likening), nor through tahrif (distortion), nor ta`weel (allegory or metaphor), nor ta'teel (denial). They avoid entering into deep rational philosophical discussions of matters relating to Islamic beliefs that are not supported by the Quran, the Sunnah or the understanding of the Sahabah with specific wording; rather, their discussion and presentation of beliefs revolves entirely around textual evidences found in these three main sources, while remaining cautious to avoid taking the path of the Ẓāhirīs (literalists) either. The Atharis believe this to be the methodology adhered to by the first three generations of Muslims (i.e. the Salaf), therefore making it the school of Sunni Aqidah that they believe is adhering to the truth.

Due to the emphasis of the Hanbali school of thought on textualism, Muslims who are Hanbali usually prefer the Athari methodology in Aqidah. However, Atharis are not exclusively Hanbali, many Muslims from other schools of thought adhere to the Athari school of Aqidah also.

The Atharis are also called sometimes the Salafis. And their theological system of Aqidah is most of the time called Aqidat al-Salaf (or in fewer occasions: Aqidat As-hab al-Hadith).

Ash'ari, founded by Abu al-Hasan al-Ash'ari (873–935). This theological system of Aqidah was embraced by plenty of Muslim scholars such as Imam al-Ghazali.

* Ash'ari theology stresses divine revelation over human reason. Contrary to the Mu'tazilites, they say that ethics cannot be derived from human reason, but that God's commands, as revealed in the ''Qur'an'' and the ''Sunnah'' (the practices of Muhammad and his companions as recorded in the traditions, or ''hadith''), are the sole source of all morality and ethics.

Regarding the nature of God and the divine attributes, the Ash'ari rejected the Mu'tazilite position that all Qur'anic references to God as having physical attributes were metaphorical. The Ash'aris insisted that these attributes were "true", since the ''Qur'an'' could not be inclusive of an error, but that they were not to be understood as implying anthropomorphism or any materialistic bodily nature.

* Ash'aris tend to stress divine omnipotence over human free will.

* Ash'aris believe that the ''Qur'an'' is eternal and uncreated.

Maturidi, founded by Abu Mansur al-Maturidi (died 944). Maturidiyyah was a minority tradition until it was accepted by the Turkish tribes of Central Asia (previously they had been Ash'ari and followers of the Shafi'i school, it was only later on migration into Anatolia that they became Hanafis and followers of the Maturidi creed). One of the tribes, the Seljuk Turks, migrated to Turkey, where later the Ottoman Empire was established. Their preferred school of law achieved a new prominence throughout their whole empire although it continued to be followed almost exclusively by followers of the Hanafi school while followers of the Shafi and Maliki schools within the empire followed the Ash'ari school. Thus, wherever can be found Hanafi followers, there can be found the Maturidi creed.

* Maturidis argue that the knowledge of God's existence can be derived through pure reason.

Sunni view of hadith

The ''Qur'an'' as it exists today in book form was compiled by Muhammad's companions (Sahaba) in approximately 650 CE, and is accepted by all Muslim denominations. However, there were many matters of belief and daily life that were not directly prescribed in the Qur'an, but were actions that were observed by Muhammad and the early Muslim community. Later generations sought out oral traditions regarding the early history of Islam, and the practices of Muhammad and his first followers, and wrote them down so that they might be preserved. These recorded oral traditions are called ''hadith''. Muslim scholars have through the ages sifted through the ''hadith'' and evaluated the chain of narrations of each tradition, scrutinizing the trustworthiness of the narrators and judging the strength of each ''hadith'' accordingly.

Most Sunni Muslims accept the ''hadith'' collections of Bukhari and Muslim as the most authentic (''sahih,'' or correct), and while accepting all hadiths verified as authentic, grant a slightly lesser status to the collections of other recorders. There are, however, four other collections of ''hadith'' that are also held in particular reverence by Sunni Muslims, making a total of six:

Sahih al-Bukhari

Sahih Muslim

Sunan an-Nasa'ii

Sunan Abu Dawud

Sunan at-Tirmidhi

Sunan ibn Majah

There are also other collections of ''hadith'' which also contain many authentic ''hadith'' and are frequently used by scholars and specialists. Examples of these collections include:

Musannaf of Abd al-Razzaq

Musnad of Ahmad ibn Hanbal

Mustadrak of Al Haakim

Muwatta of Imam Malik

Sahih Ibn Hibbaan

Sahih Ibn Khuzaymah

See also

Islamic schools and branches

Sunni view of the Sahaba

Shia Islam

Notes

Further reading

Branon Wheeler, Applying the Canon in Islam: The Authorization and Maintenance of Interpretive Reasoning in Ḥanafī Scholarship, SUNY Press, 1996

External links

Books Related of Ahle Sunnat Wa Jamat Aqaid

Books relating to belief of ahl as-Sunnat

Ahl as-sunnat belief

Translation and Detailed Commentary on Quran

SunniPath - Study Islam Online

ace:Ahlussunah Wal-jama'ah ar:أهل السنة والجماعة ast:Sunismu az:Sünni bn:সুন্নি (ইসলাম) bs:Sunitski islam bg:Сунити ca:Sunnisme cs:Sunnitský islám cy:Sunni da:Sunni-islam de:Sunniten dv:ސުއްނީ މުސްލިމުން et:Sunniidid el:Σουνίτες es:Sunismo eo:Sunaismo eu:Sunismo fa:سنی fo:Sunni Islam fr:Sunnisme fy:Soennisme gl:Sunismo ko:수니파 hy:Սուննի իսլամ hi:सुन्नी मुस्लिम hr:Suniti id:Sunni os:Сунниттæ is:Súnní it:Sunnismo he:אסלאם סוני jv:Sunni kn:ಸುನ್ನಿ ಇಸ್ಲಾಂ kk:Сунни Исләм sw:Wasunni ku:Sunîtî la:Secta Sunnitica lv:Sunnītu islāms lt:Sunizmas hu:Szunnita iszlám ml:സുന്നി mr:सुन्नी इस्लाम ms:Ahli Sunah Waljamaah nl:Soennisme ja:スンナ派 no:Sunniislam nn:Sunniislam uz:Ahl as-Sunna val-Jamoa ps:سني pl:Sunnizm pt:Sunismo ro:Sunnism ru:Сунниты sq:Islami Sunnit simple:Sunni Islam sk:Sunnitský islam so:Ahlu sunno waljamaaca ckb:سوننە sr:Сунити sh:Сунити fi:Sunnalaisuus sv:Sunniter tl:Islam na Sunni ta:சுன்னி இஸ்லாம் tt:Сөнничелек te:సున్నీ ఇస్లాం th:ซุนนีย์ tr:Ehl-i Sünnet uk:Сунізм ur:اہل سنت vi:Hồi giáo Sunni war:Sunni Islam yi:סוניס yo:Sunni zh-yue:遜尼派 diq:İslamo Sunni zh:遜尼派

Al-Hasan ibn ‘Alī ibn Abī Tālib ()‎ ( born March 1, 625 CE (Ramadhān 15th, 3 AH) – died 669CE (Safar 7th or 28th, 50 AH) aged 47) is an important figure in Islam, the son of Fatimah the daughter of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, and of the fourth Caliph Ali ibn Abi Talib. Hasan is a member of the Ahl al-Bayt and Ahl al-Kisa. He briefly succeeded his father Ali ibn Abi Talib as the righteous Caliph following the latter's death, before retiring to Madinah and entering into an agreement with the first Umayyad ruler, Muawiyah ibn Abi Sufyan, who assumed the Caliphate. Both Sunni and Shia Muslims regard Hasan as a martyr.

Birth and family life

According to Shia and Sunni sources, Muhammad, upon the birth of his grandson in 3 AH, was ordered by the archangel Gabriel to name him ''Hasan'' - a name not used in the pre-Islamic period. Muhammad also honoured his grandson by reciting the Adhān in his right ear, the Iqāmah in his left ear, shaved the head of his grandson, and sacrificed a ram for the sake of his birth.

He married four women:

# Umm Ishaq bint Talha ibn `Ubayd Allah. # Hafsa bint 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr. # Hind bint Suhayl bin `Amru. # Ju'da bint al-Ash'ath ibn Qays

Early life

As a growing youth Hasan saw his father on the battlefield defending Islam as well as preaching to a vast congregation of believers on the occasion of hajj and as a missionary of Islam to Yemen before retreating to a passive role in the matters of the state during the period of the first three caliphs after the death of his grandfather, Muhammad. Hasan and his younger brother, Husayn ibn Ali, are believed to have been greatly beloved by their grandfather Muhammad as numerous hadiths affirm . There are also hadiths that state that Hasan and Husayn are the ''Masters of the youth in paradise'' and that Hasan and his brother Hussein are imams "whether they sit or stand". Hasan is one of five persons included in the Hadith of the Cloak. He is said to have been the first of the Prophet's family to enter Yemeni Kisa after Muhammad and to have walked hand in hand with Muhammad as a child to testify to the truth of Islam at Mubahila.

In Medina when Muhammad was sitting with his companions and Hasan, who was still a child, was playing between his hands, Muhammad is said to have gazed at Hasan and said to his companions "This (grand)son of mine is a lord, and may God place in his hands the reconciliation of two great groups of believers (''mu'minun'')."

When the third caliph was murdered by demonstrators in his palace in Mad'mah Ali was elected to lead the Muslims. Hasan assisted his father: he went to Kufa and raised an army against the dissenting Muslims, then participated actively in the battles of Basra, Siffin and Nahrawan alongside his father, demonstrating skill both as a soldier and a leader. He travelled to Mecca with Ammar ibn Yasir to summon armies to fight against the army accompanying Aisha.

Caliphate

The Shia view is that Ali’s right to the caliphate was usurped and his family abused by Abu Bakr but Ali, Hasan and his younger brother Husayn ibn Ali valued the Muslim community's stability above their own rights, even going to defend the third caliph Uthman before Ali himself received the caliphate.

Upon the death of Ali in Kufa a new caliph had to be elected. According to Ali's appointment before his death the choice was restricted to Hasan and his younger brother Husayn. The latter did not claim the caliphate so Kufi Muslims gave their allegiance (''bay'ah'') to Hasan without dispute. Most caliph chronologies do not include Hasan ibn Ali among the Rashidun Caliphs. However, many Sunni Muslim historians, such as Suyuti, Ibn al-Arabi, and Ibn Kathir accept Hasan ibn Ali as the last such caliph.

:Suyuti in ''The Khalifas who took the right way'' page 9 and ''History of the Caliphs'' Vol 12 :Ibn al-Arabi in his ''Sharh Sunan al-Tirmidhi'' 9:68-69 ref :Ibn Kathir in ''The Beginning and the End'' Vol 6 page 249-250

Muawiyah ibn Abi Sufyan, who had a long-running dispute with Ali, summoned the commanders of his forces in Syria, Palestine, and Transjordan to join him in preparation for battle. He first attempted to negotiate with Hasan, sending him letters asking him to give up his caliphate, believing he could thus avoid killing fellow Muslims and avoid lingering questions regarding his legitimacy should he kill Hasan outright. Most historians say that large sums of money and promises of vast properties and governorships of provinces were offered to commanders of Hassan's army who left him, and that Muawiyah was not interested in the functions of preaching piety or theology but in expanding his sphere of influence in the territories already conquered by the Muslims and in further conquests to the north and north west of Syria.

Negotiations failed and Muawiyah decided to march against Hasan's army of forty thousand with his own army, claimed to have numbered sixty thousand fighters. The two armies faced each other near Sabat. Hasan is said to have given a sermon in which he proclaimed his hatred of schism and appealed to his men to follow his orders even if they did not agree with them. Some of the troops, taking this as a sign that Hasan was preparing to give up battle, rebelled and attacked him. Hasan was wounded but loyal soldiers surrounded him and managed to kill the mutineers. One commander, Ubayd-Allah ibn Abbas, deserted him and joined Muawiyah’s forces.

The two armies fought a few inconclusive skirmishes. Hasan was distressed, understanding that the engagement of Muslims in a battle against each other would mean a loss of many: Muawiyah also had his concerns about being forced into a battle and sent two men from the Banu Quraish to negotiate a settlement. Shia scholars quote hadith from later Shia Imams to the effect that Hassan lacked the support to fight and win and so ceded power to Muawiya, signing an agreement that he would return the caliphate at his death. According to Shia scholars Hasan stipulated that the caliphate should be returned to him if he was still alive after Muawiyah's death, otherwise it should be given to his younger brother. According to Sunni scholars Hasan stipulated that Muawiyah should follow the Qur'an and the Sunnah, allow a parliament (''shura'') as regards the caliphate after his death and refrain from any acts of revenge. Muawiyah accepted the conditions attached to the peace treaty;

# the enforced public cursing of Ali, e.g. during prayers, should be abandoned # Muawiyah should not use tax money for his own private needs # there should be peace: followers of Hasan should be given security and their rights

Muawiyah proceeded to Kufa and demanded that the Muslims there pledge allegiance to him as caliph. He also asked Hasan to join him and support him in the fight against the rebellious Kharijites. Hasan is claimed to have written to him in response: "I have abandoned the fight against you, even though it was my legal right, for the sake of peace and reconciliation of the Muslim congregation (''ummah''). Do you think that I shall then fight together with you?"

Muawiyah did not comply with the terms of the treaty, saying to the people of Kufa, “do you think I have taken power to teach you? No, I have taken power and if any one of you tries to disagree with me he shall pay the costly price of the loss of his head.” He carried out his ambition of keeping the power in his family by nominating his son Yazid as caliph after him. But the decision stirred widespread agitation, particularly amidst prominent personalities such as Hussain, Abdul-Rahman ibn Abu Bakr, Abdullah ibn Umar, Abdullah ibn Al-Zubayr and others.

Retirement to Medina

Hasan returned to Medina. According to Persian Shia historians , Marwan ibn al-Hakam, the personal secretary to the third caliph Uthman ibn Affan who had fought against Ali during the Battle of Bassorah, was now the governor of Medina. Hasan lacked his moral support and had a hard time during his stay there after the peace treaty, with taunts and abuse from some of Muawiyah's followers and the anger of his supporters for having relinquished the caliphate.

On the other hand, Sunni historians see the treaty as conferring great benefits on the Muslim Empire in years to come. Hasan has been quoted as commenting:

"If Muawiyah was the rightful successor to the caliphate, he has received it. And if I had that right, I, too, have passed it on to him; so the matter ends there."

He donated all his belongings completely twice in his lifetime. Also, he divided his property between himself and the poor people equally three times .

Death

Hasan ibn Ali died in Medina either on Safar 7th or 28th, 50 AH. He is buried at the famous Jannatul Baqee‘ cemetery across from the Masjid al-Nabawi (Mosque of the Prophet). According to historians, Muawiyah wished to pass the caliphate to his own son Yazid, and saw Hasan as an obstacle. He secretly contacted one of Hasan's wives, Ja'da bint al-Ash'ath ibn Qays, and incited her to poison her husband. Ja'da did as Muawiyah suggested, giving her husband poison mixed with honey. Madelung notes other traditions suggesting that Hasan may have been poisoned by another wife, the daughter of Suhayl ibn Amr, or perhaps by one his servants and also cites the early historians (Baladhuri, Waqidi, etc.). Madelung believed that Hasan was poisoned and that the famous early Islamic historian al-Tabari suppressed the tale out of concern for the faith of the common people.

Shia Muslims believe that Ja'da was promised gold and marriage to Yazid. Seduced by the promise of wealth and power, she poisoned her husband, and then hastened to the court of Muawiyah in Damascus to receive her reward. Muawiyah reneged on his promises and married her to another man.

Hasan had asked for his body to be taken to the prophet's grave, so that he could pay his last respect, and then to be buried near his grandmother Fatima bin Asad. This caused armed opposition. As the funeral proceeded towards the grave of Muhammad some Umayyads mounted on horses obstructed it. Aisha bint Abu Bakr appeared, riding a mule and shouting that the grave of Muhammad was in her house and she would not allow the grandson of Khadijah binte Khuwaylid to be buried beside Muhammad. A shower of arrows fell on the coffin. Husayn, fulfilling the last wish of his brother, turned the procession of the funeral towards Jannat al-Baqi, the general graveyard of Medina, where he was buried. According to one version Marwan asked Muhammad's wife Aisha also to allow his relative Uthman ibn Affan to be buried beside the Prophet if Hasan were to be buried there, but Aisha refused Marwan's request and did not allow anyone else to be buried beside Muhammad.

After Hasan's death his Iraqi followers wrote to Husayn pledging allegiance and proposing to remove Muawiya. However, Husayn refused, choosing to abide by the treaty between Hassan ibn Ali and Muawiyah, which could not be broken at that time.

The shrine of Hasan's tomb was destroyed by 20th century Salafi Saudis.

Timeline

{{a-hou|Banu Hashim|15th Ramadhān 3 AH|≈ 1^st March 625 CE|28^th Safar 50 AH|≈ 6^th March 670 CE |Banu Quraish}}

See also

Twelve Imams

Shi'a Islam

Notes

1: Sahih Bukhari: 2: Suyuti in ''The Khalifas who took the right way'' page 9 and ''History of the Caliphs'' Vol 12 ::Ibn al-Arabi in his ''Sharh Sunan al-Tirmidhi'' ref ::Ibn Kathir in ''The Beginning and the End'' Vol 6 page 249-250 3: 4:

References

Hasan Reza Ansari, Kulti, India

External links

Hasan ibn 'Ali In Encyclopædia Britannica

Hasan ibn 'Ali by Wilferd Madelung , In Encyclopædia Iranica

Kitab al Irshad, by Sheikh al Mufid, translated by I.K.A Howard, pp. 279 - 289

Category:624 births Category:669 deaths Category:Shi'a imams Category:Ismailism Category:Family of Muhammad Category:7th-century caliphs Category:Alid dynasties Category:Assassinated Shi'a imams Category:Shi'a views Category:Twelver imams Category:Zaidi imams

ar:الحسن بن علي بن أبي طالب az:İmam Həsən bs:Hasan ibn Ali ca:Al-Hàssan ibn Alí cs:Hasan ibn Alí da:Hasan ibn Ali de:Hasan ibn ʿAlī el:Χασάν ιμπν Αλί fa:حسن مجتبی fr:Al-Hassan ibn Ali hi:हसन id:Hasan bin Ali it:Al-Hasan ibn Ali he:חסן בן עלי ml:ഹസൻ ഇബ്നു അലി mzn:حسن بن علی ms:Hassan bin Ali nl:Hassan ibn Ali ja:ハサン・イブン・アリー no:Hasan ibn Ali pnb:حسن ابن علی pl:Hasan ibn Ali ru:Хасан ибн Али sq:Hasan sh:Hasan ibn Ali su:Hasan bin Ali fi:Hasan ibn Ali sv:Hasan ibn Ali te:హసన్ ఇబ్న్ అలీ th:ฮะซัน tr:Hasan bin Ali uk:Хасан ібн Алі ur:حسن ابن علی diq:İmam Hesen zh:哈桑·本·阿里·本·阿比·塔利卜

Coordinates	24°6′″N97°12′″N
name	Silvestre Reyes
birth date	November 10, 1944
birth place	Canutillo, Texas
state	Texas
district	16th
term start	January 3, 1997
term end
preceded	Ron Coleman
succeeded	Incumbent
office2	Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee
term start2	January 4, 2007
term end2	January 3, 2011
preceded2	Peter Hoekstra
succeeded2	Mike Rogers
party	Democratic
spouse	Carolina Reyes
religion	Roman Catholic
occupation	Border Patrol Sector Chief
residence	El Paso, Texas
education	El Paso Community College, Associate's Degree
Branch	United States Army
Serviceyears	1966-1968
Battles	Vietnam War }}

Silvestre "Silver" Reyes (born November 10, 1944) is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1997, and the Chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, the primary Committee in the U.S. House of Representatives charged with the oversight of the United States Intelligence Community, including the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), and other executive branch departments and agencies. Reyes is also a Senior Member of the House Armed Services Committee, the primary Committee responsible for the funding and oversight of the Department of Defense (DOD) and the United States Armed Forces, as well as substantial portions of the Department of Energy. He is a member of the Democratic Party.

Early life, education and career

Reyes was born in Canutillo, Texas, in 1944 and is the first of 10 children. He graduated from Canutillo High School and received his Associate's Degree from El Paso Community College. He attended the University of Texas at Austin before serving in the United States Army in 1966. In 1967, Reyes served as a helicopter crew chief in the Vietnam War. In 1968, Reyes suffered complete hearing loss to his right ear when mortar landed near his foxhole during combat.

In 1969, Reyes joined the U.S. Border Patrol where he served for over 26 years. From 1984 - 1995 Reyes served as the Sector Chief for the McAllen and El Paso Sectors of the Border Patrol. In 1993, while serving as the Chief Patrol Agent of the El Paso Border Patrol Sector, Reyes led the Border Patrol to strategically position agents on the border to intercept undocumented immigrants in a strategy later termed "Operation Hold the Line". This operation was the predecessor to a similar operation dubbed "Operation Gatekeeper" in Southern California. Such tactics were not without controversy, as placing Border Patrol Agents in high visibility positions placed them at tremendous risk from rock and firearms assaults from the Mexican side of the border. Immigrant-rights groups also protested the strategy, as it was effective in deterring undocumented aliens from crossing in protected urban areas such as El Paso and San Diego, California and as such "forced" them to cross through desolate parts of the Southern United States, such as the deserts of the Imperial Valley in California and the Sonora desert in Arizona. Reyes gained enormous popularity in the 16th Congressional District due to the Operation's success in reducing undocumented immigration.

U.S. House of Representatives

Committee assignments

Committee on Armed Services

*Subcommittee on Tactical Air and Land Forces (Ranking Member)

*Subcommittee on Readiness

As a senior member of both the Armed Services and (formerly) Select Intelligence Committees, Reyes is a key member of Congress on Defense and military issues. He is credited with the recent success of Fort Bliss and White Sands military bases in the most recent Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) decisions by the Department of Defense. On December 1, 2006, Reyes was tapped by Pelosi, the prospective Speaker of the House, to be the new chairman of the House Intelligence Committee.

Reyes was a key player in the 109th Congress because of his Immigration and Border Patrol experience. He was instrumental in leading the opposition to the House immigration proposal proposed by James Sensenbrenner, H.R. 4437. Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi selected Reyes to present and lead the debate on a Democratic substitute to replace the Sensenbrenner legislation, which was voted down on a party line vote.

Reyes has served as chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. In 2002, he considered running for the United States Senate, but decided against such a move. In 2005 he missed 94 votes in the House, the ninth most of any member.

On March 27, 2009, Reyes was tapped by Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi to lead a high-level Congressional Delegation to meet with President Felipe Calderon of Mexico. Reyes led the delegation and was accompanied by Ike Skelton, Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee and Howard Berman, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. The three high-ranking Chairman discussed Mexico's efforts to combat drug-related violence and assessed U.S. efforts to assist the Mexican government.

In his role as Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, Reyes was a deciding factor in whether legislation on the floor of the House extending provisions of the FISA would include retroactive immunity for telecommunications companies which participated in the NSA's warrantless wiretap program. Although he initially supported immunity for telecommunications companies, saying that immunity was necessary and the companies hadn't done anything illegal, eventually after being contacted by pressure groups, the version of the legislation he introduced did not contain provisions for telecom immunity, despite Republican threats to torpedo any bill that did not contain telecom immunity.

In a December 2006 interview with ''Congressional Quarterly'', Reyes said that al-Qaeda, an exclusively Sunni group, was composed of "both" Sunni and Shi'te members. He then instead asserted al-Qaeda is "predominantly probably Shi'ite." He also avoided answering the question whether Hezbollah, a Shi'ite organization, was Sunni or Shi'ite.

In the same interview, Reyes said he favors sending more troops to Iraq: "on a temporary basis, I’m willing to ramp them up by twenty or thirty thousand ... for, I don’t know, two months, four months, six months – but certainly that would be an exception." Yet, a month later, when President George W. Bush proposed sending approximately 21,500 more troops, Reyes said to the ''El Paso Times'', "we don't have the capability to escalate even to this minimal level."

Caucus Memberships

Congressional Arts Caucus

Awards

ASME honored Reyes with the ASME President's Award on April 3, 2008. ASME President Sam Zamrik presented the award in recognition of Reyes' "outstanding contributions in promoting diversity in the science, technology, engineering, and math fields" as the co-founder of the Congressional Diversity and Innovation Caucus.

Political campaigns

In 1995, Reyes retired from the U.S. Border Patrol and announced his candidacy for the U.S. Congress against Ron Coleman in the Democratic primary, but Coleman later retired. After winning a primary runoff, Reyes was easily elected to the House of Representatives as a Democrat in November 1996. He was most recently re-elected by a wide margin in the November 2008 General Election, where he won with over 82 percent of the vote.

References

External links

U.S. Representative Silvestre Reyes ''official U.S. House site''

Silvestre Reyes for U.S. Congress ''official campaign site''

Profile at SourceWatch

U.S. Congressman's Family Member Kidnapped in Juarez, June 2008

Reyes the Rainmaker: Electronics and earmarks on the border, Tom Barry, Newspaper Tree, September 17, 2009

Category:1944 births Category:Living people Category:American politicians of Mexican descent Category:People from El Paso, Texas Category:Members of the United States House of Representatives from Texas Category:American military personnel of the Vietnam War Category:Texas Democrats Category:Hispanic and Latino American people in the United States Congress

de:Silvestre Reyes la:Silvester Reyes pt:Silvestre Reyes sv:Silvestre Reyes