Khalifa Uthman bin Affan - Governors of Uthman: Abdullah bin 'Aamir

Appointment as the Governor of Basra
When Abu Musa Ash'ari was deposed from the governorship of Basra, Uthman appointed Abdullah b 'Aamir as the Governor of Basra. The people of Basra wanted that a young man should be appointed as the Governor and in deference to this wish of the people, Abdullah b 'Aamar a young man of twenty- five was appointed to the of fice. 'Aamir the father of Abdullah was a maternal uncle of Uthman. Abdullah was thus a cousin of Uthman.

Assessment of Abdullah b 'Aamir
In most of the accounts that have come down to us, Uthman is accused of nepotism, and appointing his cousin Abdullah b 'Aamir, a young man of twenty-five years as the Governor of Basra. The critics forget that Abdullah b 'Aamir proved to be the most successful Governor of history. No other Governor in the history of the world ever made conquests on as large a scale as Abdullah b 'Aamir. It is unfortunate that full details of the exploits of Abdullah b 'Aamir have not been presented in history. Only fragmentary accounts of his victories are given in history books, and it appears that the achievements of Abdullah b 'Aamir and Uthman in the matter of these extensive victories have been suppressed under some intellectual conspiracy. What is regrettable is that while Uthman and his relatives who served under him are blamed for their favoritism, and tribal predilections, their unique achievements have been belittled and passed over. As a matter of fact, Abdullah b 'Aamir deserves to be honored as one of the top ranking Generals of Islam.