1285 lunar years ago, on this day in 148 AH, Suleiman bin Mehran Kufi, popularly known as al-A'mash passed away in Kufa. He had a sharp memory and had memorized a great number of hadith. Although, he was a follower of the Imams of the Prophet's Household, the other denominations of Islam also have great respect for him. He was said to be from Damavand, northeast of Tehran. Two days before his death he was visited by some contemporary scholars including Abu Hanifa Noman bin Sabet – the founder of the Hanafi school of jurisprudence who was the son of a Zoroastrian convert from Kabul.

1259 lunar years ago, on this day in 174 AH, Abdullah bin Lahiyya, the chief judge of Egypt passed away. He was considered a reliable narrator of hadith by most of the Sunni scholars, and among his narrations are many which expose Mu’awiyah ibn Abu Sufyan as a criminal and murderer of Muslims including the companions of the Prophet such as Hujr ibn Adi, who was martyred near Damascus for being a staunch follower of Imam Ali (AS).

1110 lunar years ago, on this day in 323 AH, Obaidullah Mahdi died. He claimed to be a descendant of Ismail, the son of the Prophet’s 6th Infallible Successor, Imam Ja'far as-Sadeq (AS). He rejected the Abbasids and all preceding caliphs as usurpers of the political rights of the Prophet’s divinely-appointed successor, Imam Ali ibn Abi Taleb (AS), and declared himself the caliph in the Maghreb or North Africa, in what is now Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco, after seceding from the Abbasid caliphate of Baghdad, and founded the Fatimid Dynasty which later shifted its capital to Egypt, and ruled for a total of 274 years.

287 solar years ago, on this day in 1725, Peter the Great, the third Russian Emperor of the Romanov Dynasty, died at the age of 53 years. He succeeded Ivan Alekseyevich in 1696, following his death to the Tsardom of Russia. His expansionist policies focused on access to the warm waters of Black Sea, which brought him into conflict with the Ottoman Empire. He brutally attacked and seized the Muslim Khanate of Crimea and occupied the lands of the Bashkir Muslims as well as the Muslim Khanate of Astrakhan on the northern coast of the Caspian Sea. He also pursued his expansionist policies westwards in Europe that brought him into conflict with Poland and Sweden. Later he crowned himself the first emperor of Russia. Peter the Great was a violent and ruthless person, who even killed his own sole son Alexei on suspicion of plotting against him. During his cruel reign the lives, assets, and freedom of people were all exposed to his aggressions.

139 lunar years ago, on this day in 1294 AH, the scholar Mohammad Qazvini was born in Tehran. He was a talented person and during his adolescence, he showed his ability in literature and theology, and acquired the knowledge from his father and other masters in the field of literature, which gradually made him an expert in these fields. He spent some years in Europe and during his stay he made copies of the renowned Persian manuscripts in European museums and libraries. Mohammad Qazvini has left works in the field of literature. The book titled "The Era of Hafez" can be regarded as his masterpiece. This great researcher died in 1369 AH at the age of 75 years, and was laid to rest in Rayy, south of Tehran.

49 solar years ago, on this day in 1963, Colonel Abdus-Salaam A'ref, with the help of Ba'thist army officers, seized power in Iraq and declared himself as president, after bombarding the residence of President Abdul-Kareem Qassem and killing him. Three years later in 1966, he was killed in a plane crash while returning to Baghdad from Basra, where in a speech broadcast on radio he had indulged in blasphemous demagoguery by questioning the famous sermon of the Prophet's First Infallible Successor, Imam Ali ibn Abi Taleb (AS) concerning the fickleness of faith of the Iraqi people.

33 solar years ago, on this day in 1979, millions of people all over Iran staged rallies in support of the provisional government announced by the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Imam Khomeini (may his soul rest in peace). Later in the day, officers of the air force, clad in their uniforms, assembled before the Imam to declare their allegiance. Imam Khomeini said in a famous statement: "Till now you had been in the service of wayward, and now you have returned to the way of the holy Qur'an. May the holy Qur'an be your guardian and protector, and hopefully, with your support the people of Iran will succeed in forming the government of Islamic justice." The remnants of the Shah's regime were frightened at this development. In view of the importance of this event, every year, air force personnel on this day assemble before the Leader of the Islamic Revolution to renew their allegiance to the ideals of the Islamic Revolution. Following the victory of the Islamic Revolution, the 19th of Bahman, corresponding to February 8 was named as the Army Air Force Day.