Basra, located in present-day Iraq, had already been under Safavid control from 1508 to 1524, when it was lost upon Shah ("King") Ismail I's death. In the ensuing period, the Ottomans, rivals of the Safavids, managed to establish nominal rule over the city. De facto rule of Basra remained in the hands of the local Arab Al-Mughamis tribe, a branch of the Banu'l-Muntafiq.