WORLD RELIGIONS

Detailed explanation-1: -Major denominations or branches. The Shīʿa community throughout its history split over the issue of the Imamate. The largest branch are the Twelvers, followed by the Zaydīs and the Ismāʿīlīs.

Detailed explanation-2: -The divide originated with a dispute over who should succeed the Prophet Muhammad as leader of the Islamic faith he introduced. Today, about 85 percent of the approximately 1.6 billion Muslims around the world are Sunni, while 15 percent are Shia, according to an estimate by the Council on Foreign Relations.

Detailed explanation-3: -Shias, a term that stems from shi’atu Ali, Arabic for “partisans of Ali, ‘’ believe that Ali and his descendants are part of a divine order. Sunnis, meaning followers of the sunna, or “way” in Arabic, of Mohammed, are opposed to political succession based on Mohammed’s bloodline.