Grand Ayatollah (1889–1970) (Arabic: أية الله العظمى سيد محسن الطباطبائ الحكيم) was born into a family, the Tabatabaei, renowned for its scholarship. He was always in the forefront to defend Islam and Muslims. He became the sole Marja' in 1961 after the death of the Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Husayn Borujerdi. His son Abdul Aziz al-Hakim was the leader of SIIC, the largest political party in Iraq. Seven of Muhsin al-Hakim's sons were killed, six of them on the orders of Saddam Hussein.