Strategies firms can use when entering foreign markets

Islamic Civil War - Battle of Siffin

Islamic Civil War - Battle of Siffin Introduction Conflict: The Battle of Siffin was part of the First Fitna (Islamic Civil War) which lasted from 656–661.   The First Fitna was a civil war in the early Islamic State caused by the murder of Caliph Uthman ibn Affan in 656 by Egyptian rebels.             Dates: Beginning on July 26, 657, the Battle of Siffin lasted three days, ending on the 28th. Commanders Armies: Forces of Muawiyah I Muawiyah IAmr ibn al-Aasapproximately 120,000 men Forces of Ali ibn Abi Talib Ali ibn Abi TalibMalik ibn Ashterapproximately 90,000 men Battle of Siffin - Background: Following the murder of Caliph Uthman ibn Affan, the caliphate of the Muslim Empire passed to the cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet Muhammad, Ali ibn Abi Talib. Shortly after ascending to the caliphate, Ali commenced consolidating his hold over the empire. Among those who opposed him was the governor of Syria, Muawiyah I. A kinsman of the slain Uthman, Muawiyah refused to acknowledge Ali as caliph due his inability to bring the murders to justice. In an attempt to avoid bloodshed, Ali sent an envoy, Jarir, to Syria to seek a peaceful solution. Jarir reported that Muawiyah would submit when the murderers were caught. Battle of Siffin - Muawiyah Seeks Justice: With the blood-stained shirt of Uthman hanging in the Damascus mosque, Muawiyahs large army marched out to meet Ali, pledging not to sleep at home until the murderers were found.   After first planning to invade Syria from the north Ali instead elected to move directly across the Mesopotamian desert.   Crossing the Euphrates River at Riqqa, his army moved along its banks into Syria and first spotted his opponents army near the plain of Siffin. After a small battle over Alis right to take water from the river, the two sides pursued a final attempt at negotiation as both wished to avoid a major engagement. After 110 days of talks, they were still at an impasse. On July 26, 657, with the talks over, Ali and his general, Malik ibn Ashter, began a massive attack on Muawiyahs lines. Battle of Siffin - A Bloody Stalemate: Ali personally led his Medinan troops, while Muawiyah watched from a pavilion, preferring to let his general Amr ibn al-Aas, direct the battle. At one point, Amr ibn al-Aas shattered part of the enemy line and nearly broke through far enough to kill Ali. This was countered by a massive attack, led by Malik ibn Ashter, which nearly forced Muawiyah to flee the field and badly reduced his personal bodyguard. The fighting continued for three days with neither side gaining an advantage, though Alis forces were inflicting a larger number of casualties. Concerned that he might lose, Muawiyah offered to settle their differences through arbitration. Battle of Siffin - Aftermath: The three days of fighting had cost Muawiyahs army approximately 45,000 casualties to 25,000 for Ali ibn Abi Talib. On the battlefield, the arbitrators decided that both leaders were equals and the two sides withdrew to Damascus and Kufa. When the arbitrators met again in February 658, no resolution was achieved. In 661, following the assassination of Ali, Muawiyah ascended to the caliphate, reuniting the Muslim Empire.   Crowned in Jerusalem, Muawiyah established the Umayyad caliphate, and began working to expand the state.   Successful in these endeavors, he reigned until his death in 680.

Critically assess the sustainability policy of The Sustainable Luxury Essay

Critically assess the sustainability policy of The Sustainable Luxury Forum 2015 - Essay Example When implemented, the policy will maximise the ability of the event to contribute positively to development and sustenance of sustainable development goals. It is, therefore, the aim of the policy to see an elevated standard of practice that is consistent with the best practices in event sustainability. The sustainable luxury forum is a series of events aimed at addressing issues related to communication, safety, energy reduction, waste minimisation, environmental conservation among others (Cole 2004). Critically assessing the sustainable management policy of this 2015 event will help in determining the strengths of the policy and coming up with recommendations on how the performance of the policy in management of the event can be improved to ensure that the mission and vision of the event are achieved. The baseline goal of any policy is not just to ensure success of the event but also its sustainability (Schwandner 2004, p. 33). Measuring the degree of sustainability is a common challenge in many organisations. Triple bottom line is a theoretic approach to measuring of sustainability. This theory was developed in mid-1990 by John Elkington as an accounting model. Presently, the theory is used beyond the measurement of profits and losses in accounting setting to include other dimensions where management is necessary. It is, therefore, widely used in environmental and also social dimensions (Kaiser & Ringlstetter 2011). The theory incorporates three dimensions of policy performance that should be established and sustained: social, environmental and financial. The main focus of the theory as it is the main theory that will be used in this paper are the people (social), the planet (environmental) and the profits (financial). These are also known as the three Ps. The social factors thus considered may include the community variations and issues related to resources