Qatif

Qatif (': القطيف) officially referred to as the Islamic Arab Republic of Qatif ( الجمهورية العربية الإسلامية القطيف''') is a country in the located on the eastern side of the  boarding  and the  to the east,  to the north and  to the south and west. It also shares maritime boarders with. Qatif is a   with the  being the Arab Socialist Union of Qatif (ASUQ). The capital is Al-Khatt, located on the eastern coast, and is the home to some of the largest deposits in the world.

The first state of Qatif was established as the ruled Sultanate of Qatif around the 15th century after gaining status as a protectorate under the, with its rulers being descendants of the. The early state of Qatif was almost constantly at war with within its boarders, becoming a protectorate of the Ottoman Empire. During the Sultanate was placed under British military administration, before the British had the pro-British Sultan Al-Qa'im ibn al-Aziz ibn Mohammed al-Tahir appointed as the Sultan of Qatif in 1923, where the Sultanate remained a protectorate of the British Empire.

In 1947 Qatif became fully independent from Britain, but remained politically unstable. In 1961 Qatif's stagnant political atmosphere was plunged into chaos after the Ba'aath Party won the parliamentary that year, promoting protests to erupt around Qatif. This political deadlock led to a cadre of  military officers to dispose the Sultan, enabling the rise of Mustafa al-Karim, leader of the the ASUQ, who became the President of Qatif. al-Karim oversaw the liquidation of the Ba'aath Party as well as the formation of the Arab Republic of Qatif in 1962. Under al-Karim businesses were nationalised as well as social welfare projects expanded with a partial implemented. al-Karim, inspired by the work of in, also oversaw the secularisation of Qatif, especially among the majority Shiite population in urban areas, with womens rights, the buildup of infrastructure and education becoming a government priority. State oppression under al-Karim was also brutal with state death squads and labour camps established to silence political dissent. In 1971 harsh austerity measures led to a political crisis that resulted the Qatif economy to be temporarily decimated as well as worsen relations with the and increase those with the  and other Arab republics. However Qatif's rich oil deposits enabled it to become one of the wealthier nations in the Persian Gulf, although tensions between it and remained extremely high, with the Saudi government funding remaining Sunni insurgents in the south of Qatif. al-Karims death in 1986 prompted a wave of and Shia Islamic Fundamentalism to erupt in the country throwing it into civil war. The war officially ended in 1991 after military chief Mohammed Mujawar took power as president of Qatif, where he led economic reforms which saw the dismantlement of the socialist economy. Mujawar in order to pacify Islamist sentiments also introduced some mild policies into the legal system proclaiming Qatif to be an Islamic Arab Republic in 1987, although Shia Islam remained the state religion with Sunni Muslims- especially those who practiced Wahhabism - were still oppressed.

During the Mujawar was forced to step down after numerous pro-democracy protests where held in the capital of Al-Khatt, leading to what foreign commenters have referred to as the "Palm Revolution". In 2012 the first elections where held in Qatif in which the Arab Socialist Union won a majority of the vote without facing any major opposition, with Abdullah Rajab elected as president. Since then Qatif has been confronted with continued Sunni insurgents in the southern regions which has s far been pacified as Qatif becomes more pluralistic.

It has a population of 8,748,900 with 90% being made up of, and most of the population being concentrated on the eastern coast of the country. Qatif has emerged as one of the Middle East's most stable economies following economic reform in the 1980's, as well as having some of the best women's rights in the region. Despite this human right abuses and the rise of organisations has severely hampered development in Qatif. Qatif is a member of the, , , , , and the. Qatif's large, untapped oil deposits has made it increasingly prominent on a world stage, although not to the extent of its neighbours Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

Etymology
Qatif was originally used to describe the city of the same name, which in itself can trace its name to the Hebrew word meaning "harvest". Qatif was for a long time used interchangeably with the name Al-Khatt, an alternative name for the city. In 1645 the Sultanate of Qatif officially named the city Al-Khatt and the land it ruled over Qatif. In Arabic Qatif is referred to as Al-Qaṭīf.

Qatif was deemed to be an Arab Republic following the signing of the modern constitution of Qatif. Under Mustafa al-Karim Qatif did play a pivotal role in the movement, although this largely dissipated after the. Following Islamisation efforts under Mohammed Mujawar Qatif was proclaimed to an. Qatif however has never been considered to be an in the same manner of, ,  or , with the government having  policies in place.

History

 * Main article: History of Qatif

Ancient History
Human life in the region that comprises of modern day Qatif can be traced back to 18,000BC, and is usually referred to as. Prominent pre-Islamic civilisations within the region include the and the. The Eastern Coast became a vibrant trading hub from Arabia to India and China, with the cities of Al-Khatt and Al-Tuwaiq becoming especially prosperous.

Eastern Arabia soon housed various peoples of different religions, ethnicities, and cultures including,  and. The people of Eastern Arabia were based around maritime trade with common goods including spices, cloths, slaves and weapons. Most people lived within city states along the coast, whilst those further inland lived nomadic lifestyles.

In 250AD the Iranian successfully conquered much of the Eastern coastline of the Arabian peninsula, including the territory of modern day Qatif. The Parthian Empires successor, the. The Persians controlled the region until the rise of Islam in the 7th century, although in practice the city states of Eastern Arabia functioned in much of the same manner prior to the Persian conquest.

The spread of following 's acquisitions of  and  reached Eastern Arabia around 629AD after Muhammad's advisor  travelled there with the intent of preaching the word of  to Eastern Arabians. Eastern Arabians were quick to embrace Islam, although this did not stop the vibrant trade relations between Eastern Arabians and the rest of the world. Eastern Arabia became especially prosperous when was established as the seat of  in 750AD, which also saw the city states of Eastern Arabia become some of the centre points for Islamic scholarship.

Qarmatians
Eastern Arabia had always been a haven for from within the Muslim world, with some forming secret resistance groups to the dominant. Around 750AD the Shia sect of Islam named had become dominant in  and Eastern Arabia. It was here that the dissident group named the gained power. In 899AD the Qarmatians led by founded a  state in Eastern Arabia and Bahrin. This event, known as the Qarmatian revolution, shocked the central Islamic leadership Baghdad who were unable to halt the Qarmatians as they had become preoccupied in stopping the fragmentation of the caliphate in North Africa.

The territory controlled by the Qarmatians was among the wealthiest in the Middle East thanks to the lucrative slave trade in the region, with slaves from cultivating the sparse but prosperous farmland in their territories. The Qarmatians impressive military might also allowed them to have neighbouring vassal city states pay tithes to them. With the exception of the practice of slavery the Qarmatian society was largely with a ruling council sharing power as "first among equals". The Qarmatians economic prosperity enabled them not to tax their citizens, whom they shared wealth out to in what was deemed in fair wages and those in debt could take out loans which had no interest. Some modern historians often state that the Qarmatians established possibly the longest surviving proto- state.

Despite these achievements the Qarmatians soon became infamous from within the Muslim world, declaring the (the pilgrimage to ) to be a superstition. In 930AD Qarmatian leader Abu Taher Sulayman ordered an attack on Mecca, where pilgrims and Meccans alike were killed by the Qarmatian advance. The Qarmatians then took the and moved it from its scared place in Mecca to the Qarmatian capital in Hassa, angering the Muslim world. Despite this other Muslims were afraid to attack the Qarmatians who by that point had established themselves as being the most powerful force in the Arabian peninsula. The Qarmatian zeal within their own territories strengthened after the prophesied divine intervention failed to materialise.

In 976AD the Qarmatians encountered a series of humiliating defeats at the hands of the in which they began to lose their vassal states that paid tribute to them. Qarmatian influence began to become more and more localised as the state was gradually cut off leaving them economically weak. In 1058AD Bahrin became free from Qarmatian control, as did much of the territory comprising of modern day Qatif shortly afterwards. In 1067AD the last major Qarmatian stronghold in Hoffuf was taken over by the forces of Abdullah bin Ali Al-Uyuni, effectively ending the Qarmatian movement.

Middle Ages
After the collapse of the Qarmatians the took over Eastern Arabia including the island of Bahrain and the city of Qatif. Historians debate on whether the Uyunids were Shiites or Sunnis - if they were the former it is likely they introduced Twelver Shia Islam to the region. In 1253 the - a dynasty that originated from the  tribe of the  confederation overthrew the Uyunids, having previously being an ally to both the Qarmatians and the Uyunids. The Usfurids had an unstable relationship with another regional power, that being the Persian prince in control of the. In 1320 Ormus took Qatif and Bahrain, but failed to permanently occupy them causing the Ormus and the Usfurids to periodically fight over control of the territory. Often in these conflicts the Ormus did not rule the territory directly instead giving control to the  which ruled from Qatif. The Jarwanids were largely considered to be made up of the remnants of the Qarmatians, being largely ruled by Isma'ilis. Despite this unlike the Qarmatians the Jarwanids reinstated worship in mosques as well as advocate Twelver Shia Islam alongside Isma'ilism.

In the 15th century the, another branch of the Banu 'Amir confederation, took over Eastern Arabia from the Usfurids, Ormus and Jarwanids. The Jabrids took over the entire coastline of the Arabian side of the, as well as launch attacks on and. The greatest expansion of the Jabrid dynasty was under Sultan Ajwad ibn Zamil, whose death in 1507 saw the kingdom divided between his sons with taking over Qatif, al-Hasa and Bahrain. Soon Bahrain was taken under the control of the Portuguese in 1521, with the Jabrid dynasty falling to the and later the.

al-Tahir dynasty
Following the defeat of the Jabrids in Eastern Arabia the Isma‘ili Tahir Dynasty which consisted of descendants of the Qarmatians took over their territory establishing a Sultanate in its place. The Tahir dynasty expanded southwards reaching into central Arabia, but soon started to strain under the expanding Ottoman Empire.

Ottoman protectorate
In 1566 the Tahir dynasty came under the control of the Ottoman Empire when it was ruled by, becoming a Beylik of the Ottomans adopting much of their laws and customs. Although Qatif was officially a Beylik paying large tithes to the Ottomans and adopting some of the Ottoman laws it functioned more as an independent state that was ruled jointly by the Bey and a governor from Anatolia. Despite this Turkish was the official language of the rulers of Qatif, although Shia Islam was still praticed.

The expansion of the saw the Qatifi Beylik embark on the fast modernisation of its military forces, as a precaution to defend itself from  forces. In 1786 The Qatifi Beylik with the support of the Ottomans was able to resist the majority of attacks made by the Saudis, with the Emirate unable to take any territory on the Eastern Coast north of Qatar. After the Qatif was given nominal independence as the Sultanate of Qatif, with Wahhabist influence in Qatif being purged as Isma‘ili Shia Islam was promoted instead. The emergence of the saw Qatif fight off Saudi forces from occupying Eastern Arabia, with the Sultanate retaining control partly due to the Sultanates superior weapons and training to the Saudis. The Saudis abandoned their plans for conquest around 1931 due to continued military failure, as Qatif started to embark on ambitious modernisation projects in line with the policy of the Ottomans, soon becoming an extremely wealthy trading post.

The modernisation efforts undertaken by the Tahir dynasty saw the building of roadways, shipyards and greater infrastructure in the main cities of Al-Khatt and Al-Hasa. There was also the establishment of an official governing body known as the Majlis, a group of Ismaili scholars who advised the Sultan on governmental matters - previously the Sultan had officially ruled alone.

Government and politics
The 1962 Constitution of Qatif, which has amended many times, serves as the supreme law of Qatif, with its most modern incarnation defining the nation as an,. In practice Qatif functions as a  with  traditions. The President functions as the leading the  branch of government. The Prime Minister serves as the, leading the National People's Council which forms the.

Since 1961 Qatifi politics have been dominated by the Arab Socialist Union of Qatif (ASUQ) which until 2011 had been the only legal political party in the country. Under Mustafa al-Karim the government was highly centralised with most of the decision making being conducted via ASUQ's central committee which was headed by the general secretary of the party who also served as president. After al-Karim's death the government retained this structure, although then president Mujawar delegated more power to his subordinates unlike al-Karim whose rule was largely personalised. Following the revolution of 2011 and the ousting of Mujawar the National People's Congress, which was previously regarded as a legislature, is where the majority of the laws are drafted, amended and approved. The president also approves of all laws passed through the National People's Congress, and has the ability to appoint the prime minister and dissolve the National People's Council. The president also serves as the of the armed forces. The president most importantly elects members of the cabinet along with the prime minister who presents the president with a list of suitable candidates from the National People's Council. The president is always the leader of the largest party from within the National People's Council. The current president of Qatif is former Minister of Finance and Abdullah Rajab, who can only serve two terms in office. The president can elect up a vice presidents who serves as his deputy, and can take up the role of presidency in the event of the presidents death or removal from office.

The prime minister of Qatif heads the Cabinet of Qatif which replaced the central committee as the de facto executive, and is elected by the majority party from within the National People's Council. All members of the National People's Council serve a maximum of five years before being elected again, with councillors having no limits on the amount of times they can run for office. The National People's Council is currently dominated by ASUQ with no real contending opposition party, with the biggest (the Islamic League for Democracy) only holding 34 of the 266 seats.

The law of Qatif is based upon -esque and  which was introduced in 1986 as part of president Mujawar's Islaminisation of the government. Sharia law is only used for property and family law such as marriage, divorce, inheritance, the handling of, and child custody. Sharia law is administrated through Sharia courts which are divided into Sunni and Shiite courts. Non-Muslim residents are not subject to Sharia law. The Qatifi interpretation of Sharia Law is handled by the Ministry of Justice. In Sharia courts a womens testimony is counted as half that of a man's.

Foreign Relations
Since the creation of the Islamic Arab Republic Qatif has endeavoured to pursue a balanced, neutral foreign policy as well as be an active player in the. Qatif is a member of large international organisations such as the, , , the , and the. Regionally Qatif is a member of the, , and the. Qatif's large deposits of petroleum have enabled it to become an influential member of.

Under the Sultanate Qatif had a general pro-Western foreign policy having especially close relations with. Following the 1961 coup Qatif began to forge close to other Arab states that formed part of the revolutionary Arab nationalist movement, with its best relations being between , , , , , and. Qatif has also established good relations with and  and has since the 1990's been a large supplier of oil to some  members.

During the Qatif aimed to remain neutral, but its socialist economy and antagonising of  led the United States to become a key supporter of royalist forces in the 1971 Qatifi crisis in which rebels attempted to oust president al-Karim and restore the previous Sultan Al-Qa'im ibn al-Aziz ibn Mohammed al-Tahir in 1968. The attempt failed partly due to Soviet support to the al-Karim government, causing Qatif to become one of the most pro-Soviet countries in the Middle East under al-Karim. al-Karim's successor President Mujawar reopened relations with America in 1986 and began to distance Qatif from the USSR. Despite this still remains one of Qatif's foremost partners in international trade.

Qatif has opposed the existence of the State of Israel since the latters creation, participating in the, the and the. Qatif has continued to refuse to recognise Israel and has reportedly armed Shia militias in such as. The Qatifi Civil War saw give substantial military and economic aid to the Qatifi government whilst  and other Gulf States such as  and the  gave similar support to. Since the war the Qatifi government has firm allies with Iran along with Syria, with some analysts remarking that Qatif is the Iran's closest and most loyal ally. Relations have been repaired with the UAE, but both Saudi Arabia and Qatar remain on poor terms with Qatif.

Recently in the Qatif along with Iran and  is alleged to have funded the  who control the  government headed by the. Qatif has provided military assistance against since the, being affiliated with the Syrian government. Qatif has also supported the regime of in the, labelling the  and its associates alongside the  as terrorists. Qatif previously opposed the, as well as being part of the coalition in the  that drove out 's  from Kuwait. In the early stages of the the Qatifi government under al-Karim gave logistical anf financial aid to the Iranian regime.

Qatif recognises the as the legitimate government of, which has often placed it at odds with. Previously Qatif saw as the ruling government - however following  Mauritania's removal of its claim to the region Qatif instead established relations with the.

Qatif's closest strategic partner is who both have majority Arab Shia populations. For import-export purposes Bahrain maintains friendly relations with Qatif, with the two countries building the between 1981 to 1986, with the causeway being open to the public in 1991. In recent years however the relationship has started to strain as Bahrain becomes much more closely aligned with Saudi Arabia and Qatar as Iranian influence in Qatif becomes more prevalent.

Demographics
As of 2014 Qatif has an estimated population of 5,748,900 people, with the last census in 2010 listing 8,686,845 people. The majority of people in Qatif are with there being significant  and  minorities. Most people follow with the second biggest religion being. Most of the population live in the urbanised areas near the coast, with those further inland often either being members of nomadic tribes or live in small rural villages. 41% of the population are under the age of 25, with only 23% over the age of 65. Qatif's has increased in recent years, rising from 2.25 to 3.14 between 2011 to 2014, with the figure expected to rise to 4.5 by 2018. The government have attempted to halt this rise by advocating for more contraception. The government has also expressed interest in legalising abortion to help battle growing fertility and possible over populating Qatif, as well as the possibility of enacting an similar to.

Ethnic groups
Of that 5,748,900 people around 92% of them are estimated to be Arabs, with 81% of that number native Qatifi. The largest ethnic minority in Qatif are who consist of 5% of the population. The second largest minority is who constitute 1.3% of the total population. Other ethnic minorities in Qatif include (mostly from ),, ,  and.

Religion
Qatif is officially a country with  although the constitution recognises  as the traditional religion of the country. The majority of the population (97%) are with 84% being Shiites and 13% being. 1.4% of the population are with the remaining 1.6% being made up of, , the  and. Official government policy is that each religion must keep out of the affairs of the other, although in practice discrimination towards especially Jews is widespread.

Qatif is the only country in the world where the majority of the population follow the branch of Shia Islam rather then the  branch more commonly found in. Around 72.4% of the population follow the Ismaili sect while 11.6% follow Twelever sect. Sunni Muslims in Qatif mainly follow, possibly stemming from their close proximity with Saudi Arabia. Religious tensions between the two sects are quite high, with the Shiites mainly concentrated in the affluent, urban and developed areas of Qatif and the Sunni's in poorer rural communities. Generally the Sunni population is considerably more conservative then the Shiites, seeing the secularisation efforts of the government as blasphemous.

Secularisation among Muslim communities have provoked extremely mixed reactions. Initially measures were extremely harsh with the banned completely and for religion to be praticed only in private. In 1966 these measures were somewhat relaxed although the and the  remain illegal, with the wearing of the  being restricted in government and education. During the civil war territory held by the Islamic Liberation Front saw strict Sharia law implemented although much of this was repelled following the retaking of the territory by government forces. Following the civil war mild Islamist policies in the 1990's prompted some support in the application of Sharia Law in the legal system, and the lifting of the ban that prohibited the wearing of the hijab in government. However, the governments continued with an overall commitment towards secularism that has led Qatifi culture to be largely tolerant of other religions in more developed areas, although there are still minor tensions. The prevalence of the hijab in Qatif is similar to that of and  with most women in Qatif wearing the hijab, although recent studies show that this is out of choice, not obligation to family members.

Language
is the only official language of Qatif with over 95% of the populace speaking it as their first language. The is primarily spoken in Qatifi communities, and Qatifi Sign language (which is part of the ) is used for the deaf. Prior to education reform in 1998, the learning of other languages outside of Arabic was not encouraged. However since then has been taught to all Qatifi children, and many others have now learnt the language to increase the ease of trade in Qatif.

The Iranian minority in Qatif mainly speak, whilst the Turkish, Pakistani and Nepalese communities speak , and  respectively. Qatifi custom expects immigrants to learn basic Arabic alongside their own language. Whilst not officially banned and  texts are extremely hard to publish in Qatif, and many Hebrew/Yiddish speakers are discriminated against.

Culture
Qatifi culture has been primarily influenced by a mix of and   along with elements from,  and  culture. Qatif has always prided itself for its role in the Arab world as well as its Shia traditions and history. Some commentators have noted partly due to this mix along with the secularisation efforts made by the government that Qatif is more open then its much more conservative neighbours and. Whilst compared to Western culture Qatif is socially conservative it is less so then other Arab countries, with an emphasis on family, education, religion, respect and law.