Mukhtar al-Thaqafi

Al- Mukhtar ibn Abī ʿ Ubaid (Arabic المختار بن أبي عبيد الثقفي, DMG al - Muhtar b. Abī ʿ Ubayd at- Ṯaqafī ) was the leader of a pro- Alid uprising in Kufa between 685 and 687 Al- Mukhtar distribution on 18 October 685 the followers of the Caliph Abdallah ibn az- Zubair, who had in turn previously expelled the Umayyads from Iraq. Soon dominated Mukhtar also parts of Iran. He relied mainly on non -Arab mawali, which he paid own expense.

As Mukhtar however amplifies the local population to Islam ( mawali ) in power and tax revenues involved, it soon came to tensions with the Arab tribal aristocracy, which saw threatened its monopoly on power. Mukhtar but could knock down this revolt and expel his opponents to Basra. It failed at in the subsequent period to extend its rule to Basra as well as an attack on the Hejaz, but he won a victory over the Umayyads in northern Iraq ( 686 ).

However Musab ibn az- Zubair defeated towards the end of the year 686 Mukhtar twice and began the siege of Kufa. With the death Muchtars on 3 April 687 Kufa and the entire Iraq fell again to the followers of Abdullah ibn az- Zubayr.

The uprising of Mukhtar is significant in that it set the mawali first time fighting for their share of power. Although this failed first, the problem worsened with the increasing crossings of the local population to Islam in the following decades and should significantly to the fall of the Umayyad (750) contribute.