Seyyedeh Razieh Mousavi - Faculty member at the Payame Noor University of Khuzestan province, Iran

Wahhabism is a movement emerged in the ۴th century by Ahmad ibnTaymiyyah, revived and developed during the ۸th century by Muhammad ibnAbd al-Wahhab. Receiving support from western countries, this movement was officially recognized in Saudi Arabia in the ۱۲th century. Today, Wahhabism has begun its activities in Khuzestan province with the aim of provoking ethnic division and weakening beliefs of the Arabs of this region. Unfortunately, lack of sufficient means of comfort and existenceof cultural gaps along with poor religious and ideological education have led to the recruitment of needy people and addicts by this sect. Although very few people are recruited to Wahhabism, this political-ideological movement shouldn’t be underestimated and effective measures must be adopted for countering Wahhabi sect. Considering the activities of Wahhabism during the recent years in Khuzestan province, this paper examines propagation methods ofWahhabism and presents some recommendations for solving this problem in the province.

Wahhabism, Ahmad ibnTaymiyyah, Muhammad ibnAbd al-Wahhab, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Khuzestan, Paradox, offense, counterstrategy