what caused the split between sunni and shiite
Shia–Sunni relations Sunni Islam and Shia Islam are the two major denominations of Islam. Their division traces back to a schism following the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the year 632AD. A dispute over succession to Muhammad as a caliph of the Islamic community spread across various parts of the world, which led to the Battle of Jamal and Battle of Siffin. The dispute intensified greatly after the Battle of Karbala, in which Hussein ibn Ali and his household were killed by the ruling Umayyad Caliph YazidÂ I, and the outcry for revenge divided the early Islamic community.