The war draws together Iran-backed Shia and Sunni militants in what appears to be closer cooperation between groups that differ in ideology but are united by opposition to Israel and the U.S.

Sunni and Shia muslims: Islam's 1,400-year-old divide explained. The divisions date back to the years immediately after the Prophet Mohammed’s death ...

Saudi Arabia has historically followed the Sunni branch of Islam, while Iran has followed the Shia branch. The split between the two branches dates back to the seventh-century, when it arose amid ...

Hezbollah, like Hamas, is designated a terrorist group by the U.S. and other countries and both share an antipathy toward Israel. Hamas says it belongs to the Sunni branch of Islam, along with the ...

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has spent almost four decades as Shi'ite Iran's supreme leader building a regional power to rival the ...

The war draws together Iran-backed Shia and Sunni militants in what appears to be closer cooperation between groups that differ in ideology but are united by opposition to Israel and the U.S.

Shia and Sunni branches of Islam split over disagreements over who should rightfully succeed the Prophet Muhammad after his death 13 centuries ago.