From Christopher: "I've done some research on him as part of a larger paper on Iraqi Shi'i messianic groups in post 2003 Iraq.
He claims to be a former (stellar) student of the late Ayatullah Muhammad Sadiq al-Sadr. Since 2003/2004, he's contested the religious and juridical authority of the Najaf marja'iyya, claiming that he is more qualified. He's also made claims to authority as a marja', which he claims to be, based on his Iraqi Arab identity. He's anti-Iranian government and in 2005 his followers attacked and torched the Iranian consulate in Basra after an Iranian state TV station criticized him. He was previously arrested by the Iraqi government, I believe in 2008. He's said to be messianic/apicalyptic; his Shi'i critics claim he says he's met Imam al-Mahdi, but al-Hasani and his followers have denied that. His critics also claim he was a Ba'thist, but they usually do not present evidence. Unlike other actual apocalyptic groups in southern Iraq which reject traditional systems of Shi'i scholarly hierarchy, so to speak, al-Hasani tries to situate himself within it. He opposed the U.S. and British occupation. "
He claims to be a former (stellar) student of the late Ayatullah Muhammad Sadiq al-Sadr. Since 2003/2004, he's contested the religious and juridical authority of the Najaf marja'iyya, claiming that he is more qualified. He's also made claims to authority as a marja', which he claims to be, based on his Iraqi Arab identity. He's anti-Iranian government and in 2005 his followers attacked and torched the Iranian consulate in Basra after an Iranian state TV station criticized him. He was previously arrested by the Iraqi government, I believe in 2008. He's said to be messianic/apicalyptic; his Shi'i critics claim he says he's met Imam al-Mahdi, but al-Hasani and his followers have denied that. His critics also claim he was a Ba'thist, but they usually do not present evidence. Unlike other actual apocalyptic groups in southern Iraq which reject traditional systems of Shi'i scholarly hierarchy, so to speak, al-Hasani tries to situate himself within it. He opposed the U.S. and British occupation. "
