al-Jama'a al-Islamiyya
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الجماعة الإسلامية al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah | |
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Leader | Omar Abdel-Rahman[1] Karam Zuhdi Ala Mohieddin Tal'at Fu'ad Qasim Ahmed Refai Taha † |
Dates of operation | 1992–1998 (as an armed group) |
Headquarters | Cairo, Egypt |
Active regions | Egypt |
Ideology | Sunni Islamism Islamic extremism (formerly)[2][3] Jihadism (formerly)[4] |
Notable attacks | Assassination of Farag Foda Hosni Mubarak 1995 assassination attempt 1995 Rijeka bombing 1996 Cairo shooting Luxor massacre |
Allies | Al-Qaeda (factions)[5] Egyptian Islamic Jihad |
Opponents | Egypt Israel United Kingdom United States |
Part of a series on Islamism |
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al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah (
From 1992 to 1998, al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah fought an insurgency against the Egyptian government during which at least 796 Egyptian policemen and soldiers, al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah fighters, and civilians including dozens of tourists were killed.[9] During the fighting al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah was given support by the governments of Iran and Sudan, as well as from al-Qaeda.[10] The Egyptian government received support during that time from the United States.[10]
The group(s) is said to have constituted "the Islamist movement's only genuine mass organizations" in Egypt.
Following the
History
Origins in universities
al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah began as an umbrella organization for Egyptian
In its early days, the group was primarily active on university campuses, and was mainly composed of university students. Originally they were a minority in the Egyptian student movement which was dominated by leftist
The Jama'at spread quite rapidly on campuses and won up to one-third of all student union elections. These victories provided a platform from which the associations campaigned for Islamic dress, the veiling of women, and the
Expansion
Having once been favored by the Egyptian government of
In April 1981, the group became involved in what was probably started as a clan feud/vendetta about livestock or property lines between Coptic and Muslim Egyptians in the vicinity of Minya, Egypt. The group believed in the position of tributary or dhimmi for Christians in Egypt and opposed any signs of Coptic "arrogance" (istikbar), such as Christian cultural identity and opposition to an Islamic state. The group distributed a leaflet accusing Egypt's one Christian provincial governor (appointed by the government) of providing automatic weapons to Christians to attack Muslims, and the Sadat administration of following orders given by the United States.[21]
Crackdown
In June 1981, a brutal sectarian Muslim-Copt fight broke out in the poor al-Zawaiyya Al Hamra district of Cairo. Over three days of fighting, 17 people were killed, 112 injured, and 171 public and private buildings were damaged.[citation needed] "Men and women were slaughtered; babies thrown from windows, their bodies crushed on the pavement below; there was looting, killing and arson."[22] Islamic Group(s) were accused of participating in the incident and in September 1981, one month before the assassination of Sadat, the al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah were dissolved by the state (although they had never been legally registered in the first place), their infrastructure was destroyed and their leaders arrested.[11]
Assassination of president Anwar Sadat
In 1980, the
Omar Abdel-Rahman
The cleric
1990s terrorism campaign
While the Islamic group had originally been an amorphous movement of local groups centered in
وَقَاتِلُوهُمْ حَتَّى لاَ تَكُونَ فِتْنَةٌ وَيَكُونَ الدِّينُ لِلّهِ فَإِنِ انتَهَواْ فَلاَ عُدْوَانَ إِلاَّ عَلَى الظَّالِمِينَ
Fight them on until there is no more Tumult, and there prevail justice and faith in Allah; but if they cease, Let there be no hostility except to those who practise oppression.
This became the official motto of the group.[24]
The 1990s saw al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah engage in an extended campaign of violence, from the murders and attempted murders of prominent writers and intellectuals, to the repeated targeting of tourists and foreigners. Serious damage was done to the largest sector of Egypt's economy – tourism[25] – and in turn to the government, but it also devastated the livelihoods of many of the people on whom the group depends for support.[26]
Victims of campaign against the Egyptian state from 1992 to 1997 totaled more than 1200
The 1991 killing of the group's leader, Ala Mohieddin, presumably by security forces, led Al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya to murder Egypt's speaker of parliament in retaliation. In June 1995, working together with
Tal'at Fu'ad Qasim was arrested in Croatia in 1995.[30]
Failed nonviolence initiative
By 1997, the movement had become paralyzed. 20,000 Islamists were in custody in Egypt and thousands more had been killed by the security forces. In July of that year, Islamist lawyer Montassir al-Zayyat brokered a deal between the al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah and the Egyptian government, called the Nonviolence Initiative, whereby the movement formally renounced violence. The next year the government released 2,000 members of the Islamic Group. After the initiative was declared Sheikh Omar Abdul Rahman also gave his approval from his prison cell in the United States, though he later withdrew it.
The initiative divided the Islamic Group between members in Egypt who supported it and those in exile who wanted the attacks to continue. Leading the opposition was EIJ leader
Temple of Hatshepsut attack
Zawahiri enlisted
The revulsion of Egyptians and rejection of jihadi terrorism was so complete, the attack's supporters backpedaled. The day after the attack, Refai Taha claimed the attackers intended only to take the tourists hostage, despite the evidence of the systematic nature of the slaughter. Others denied Islamist involvement completely. Sheikh Omar Abdel-Rahman blamed Israelis for the killings, and Zawahiri maintaining the Egyptian police had done it.[33]
When Refai Taha signed the al-Qaeda fatwa "International Islamic Front for Jihad Against Jews and Crusaders" to kill Crusaders and Jews on behalf of the Islamic Group, he was "forced to withdraw his name" from the fatwa, explaining to fellow members ... than he had "only been asked over the telephone to join in a statement of support for the Iraqi people."[34]
Attacks
Major attacks by al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah:
- 8 June 1992 – assassination of Farag Foda.
- 26 June 1995 – attempt to .
- 20 October 1995 – .
- 28 April 1996 – a mass shooting outside the Europa Hotel, Cairo, killing 17 Greek tourists mistaken for Israelis.[35][36][37]
- 17 November 1997 – Deir el-Bahri, Luxor, Egypt. 58 foreign tourists and four Egyptians killed.
It was also responsible for a spate of tourist shootings (trains and cruise ships sprayed with bullets) in middle and upper Egypt during the early 1990s. As a result of those attacks, cruise ships ceased sailing between Cairo and Luxor.
Renouncing terrorism
After spending more than two decades in prison and after intense debates and discussions with
al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah renounced bloodshed in 2003,
Harsh repressive measures by the Egyptian government and the unpopularity of the killing of foreign tourists have reduced the group's profile in recent years but the movement retains popular support among Egyptian Islamists who disapprove of the secular nature of Egypt's society and peace treaty with Israel.
In April 2006, the Egyptian government released approximately 1,200 members from prison, including a founder, Nageh Ibrahim.[39][40]
Reportedly, there have been "only two instances where members showed signs of returning to their former violent ways, and in both cases they were betrayed by informants within their own group."[41]
2011 revolution
Following the 2011 Revolution, al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah established a political party, the Building and Development Party. In August 2011, it presented 6,700 proxies (signatures) to the Egyptian political parties' committee on behalf of its party. In a statement the Jama'at said that any legislation drafted in Egypt after the revolution must refer to the sharia of God, "who blessed us with this revolution. We believe that the suffering we endured during the past years was due to neglecting religion and putting those who don't fear [God] in power." It also stated that "Islam can contain everyone and respects the freedom of followers of other religions to refer to their own sharia in private affairs."[42]
The Building and Development Party contested the
In June 2013, Egypt's president
Beliefs
One scholar studying the group,
There was a scant supply of any writing by the group's members, but some issues leading writer(s) of the Jama'at thought worth mentioning included:
- Youth must be taught that Islam was nizam kamil wa shamil (a complete and perfect system) and must regulate government and war, the judicial system and the economy.
- Egypt's disastrous 1967 War was the result of following Arab nationalism rather than Islam.
- Signs of the growth of an Islamic movement were the wearing of the veil by women and the white gallabieh and untrimmed beard by men, early marriage, and attendance at public prayers on the major Muslim festivals, Eid al-adha.[47]
While secularist social analyses of Egypt's socioeconomic problems maintained that poverty was caused by overpopulation or high defense expenditures, al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah saw the cause in the populace's spiritual failures – laxness, secularism, and corruption. The solution was a return to the simplicity, hard work, and self-reliance of earlier Muslim life.[17]
Members allegedly allying with al-Qaeda
Deputy leader of al-Qaeda Ayman al-Zawahiri announced a new alliance with a faction of Al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya. In a video released on the internet on 5 August 2006.[12] Zawahiri said "We bring good tidings to the Muslim nation about a big faction of the knights ofal-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah uniting with Al-Qaeda," and the move aimed to help "rally the Muslim nation's capabilities in a unified rank in the face of the most severe crusader campaign against Islam in its history." An al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah leader, Muhammad al-Hukaymah, appeared in the video and confirmed the unity move.[48] However, Hukaymah acknowledged that other al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah members had "backslid" from the militant course he was keeping to, and some al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah representatives also denied that they were joining forces with the international Al-Qaeda network.[49] Sheikh Abdel Akhar Hammad, a former al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah leader, told Al-Jazeera: "If [some] brothers have joined, then this is their own personal view and I don't think that most al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah members share that same opinion."[50]
Foreign relations
- Designation as a terrorist organization
Countries and organizations below have officially listed al-Jamāʻah al-islāmīyah as a terrorist organization.[51]
Country | Date | References |
United Kingdom | 29 March 2001 | [6] |
Canada | 23 July 2002 | [52] |
Israel | 2003 | [53] |
Russia | 2006 | [54] |
See also
- Terrorism in Egypt
- List of designated terrorist organizations
References
- ^ "Editor Of Independent Egyptian 'Al-Misriyyoun' Daily: Sheikh 'Omar 'Abd Al-Rahman Was Never Convicted Of Assassinating Sadat – Or Of Involvement In 1993 World Trade Center Attack". MEMRI. 23 February 2017.
- S2CID 143418392.
- S2CID 156582728.
- ^ a b c Perry, Tom (18 March 2011). "In free Egypt, Jihad leader says time for gun is over". Reuters.
- ^ Hamzawy, Amr; Grebowski, Sarah. "From Violence to Moderation: Al-Jama'a al-Islamiya and al-Jihad" (PDF). Carnegie Endowment. p. 13. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
- ^ a b "Terrorism Act 2000". Schedule 2, Act No. 11 of 2000.
- ^ "THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, COUNCIL DECISION of 21 December 2005 on specific restrictive measures directed against certain persons and entities with a view to combating terrorism" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 24 September 2009.
- ^ "Jama'a al-Islamiya rejects Assem Abdel Magued". Egypt Independent. 5 December 2013. Retrieved 6 December 2013.
- ^ Uppsala Conflict Data Program, Conflict Encyclopedia, The al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya insurgency, Government of Egypt – al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya, viewed 2013-05-03, http://www.ucdp.uu.se/gpdatabase/gpcountry.php?id=50®ionSelect=10-Middle_East# Archived 11 September 2015 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b Uppsala Conflict Data Program, Conflict Encyclopedia, The al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya insurgency, viewed 2013-05-03, http://www.ucdp.uu.se/gpdatabase/gpcountry.php?id=50®ionSelect=10-Middle_East# Archived 11 September 2015 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ ISBN 0520239342
- ^ a b c d "Al-Zawahiri: Egyptian militant group joins al Qaeda". CNN. 5 August 2006. Archived from the original on 4 November 2012. Retrieved 12 February 2011.
- ^ a b "Interactive: Full Egypt election results". Al Jazeera English. 1 February 2012. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
- ^ Kepel, Gilles. Muslim Extremism in Egypt: the Prophet and Pharaoh, p. 132
- ^ Kepel, Gilles. Muslim Extremism in Egypt: the Prophet and Pharaoh, p. 133
- ^ Kepel, Gilles. Muslim Extremism in Egypt: the Prophet and Pharaoh, p. 134
- ^ a b c Islamic Political Movements. from Helen Chapin Metz, ed. Egypt: A Country Study. Washington: GPO for the Library of Congress, 1990.
- ^ Kepel, Gilles. Muslim Extremism in Egypt: the Prophet and Pharaoh, p. 141
- ^ a b c Kepel, Gilles. Muslim Extremism in Egypt: the Prophet and Pharaoh p. 149
- ^ Kepel, Gilles. Muslim Extremism in Egypt: the Prophet and Pharaoh, p. 151
- ^ Kepel, Gilles. Muslim Extremism in Egypt: the Prophet and Pharaoh, pp. 156–66
- ^ Kepel, Gilles. Muslim Extremism in Egypt: the Prophet and Pharaoh, p. 166
- ISBN 9780745321752.
- ^ Murphy, Caryle. Passion for Islam: Shaping the Modern Middle East: the Egyptian Experience by Caryle Murphy, (2002), p. 65
- ^ "Solidly ahead of oil, Suez Canal revenues, and remittances, tourism is Egypt's main hard currency earner at $6.5 billion per year." (in 2005) ... concerns over tourism's future. Retrieved 27 September 2007.
- ^ Kepel, Jihad, 2002
- ^ Wright, Looming Towers, (2006), p. 258
- ^ "Timeline of modern Egypt". Gemsofislamism.tripod.com. Retrieved 12 February 2011.
- ^ Wright, Looming Towers, (2006), po. 213–15
- ^ Mayer, Jane, The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How the War on Terror Turned into a War on American Ideals, 2008. p. 113
- ^ Wright, Looming Towers, (2006), po. 255–56
- ^ Wright, Looming Towers, (2006), pp. 256–57
- ^ Wright, Looming Towers, (2006), pp. 257–58
- ^ Zayyat, Nontassir, The Road to al-Qaeda: the story of bin Laden's right-hand Man, Pluto Press, (2004), p. 89
- ^ United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. "Information on the Islamic Fundamentalist group al-Gama'a al-Islamiya". UNHCR. Archived from the original on 23 December 2011. Retrieved 12 February 2011.
- ^ "The Washington Post, 19 April 1996". MIT. 19 April 1996. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 12 February 2011.
- ^ "Al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya (The Islamic Group, IG) Attacks". American.edu. Archived from the original on 10 May 2003. Retrieved 12 February 2011.
- ^ "Egypt frees 900 Islamist militants". English.aljazeera.net. 6 February 2011. Archived from the original on 19 April 2007. Retrieved 12 February 2011.
- ^ "Al-Gama'a Al-Islamiyya vs. Al-Qaeda". Memri. Archived from the original on 27 September 2006. Retrieved 12 February 2011.
- ^ "News from Al-Arabiya". Archived from the original on 1 May 2006.
- ^ lawyer Montasser al-Zayyat in The Rebellion Within, An Al Qaeda mastermind questions terrorism. by Lawrence Wright, 2 June 2008
- ^ "Al-Gamaa Al-Islamiya calls for unity, says minority rights guaranteed". Daily News Egypt. 1 September 2011. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
- ^ "Islamist Bloc (Al-Nour) – Electoral Alliances – Elections 2011". Ahram Online. 19 November 2011. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
- ^ "Egypt's president appoints 17 new governors, including 8 from his Muslim Brotherhood". 17 June 2013. Archived from the original on 19 June 2013. Retrieved 17 June 2013.
- ^ "Controversial new Luxor governor quits". Al Jazeera English. 23 June 2013. Retrieved 6 December 2013.
- ^ Kepel, Gilles. Muslim Extremism in Egypt: the Prophet and Pharaoh, pp. 155–56
- ^ Kepel, Gilles. Muslim Extremism in Egypt: the Prophet and Pharaoh, pp. 153–54
- ^ "Al-Qaeda wins converts from Egyptian group". The Daily Star. 7 August 2006. Retrieved 14 May 2014.
- ^ Vinsinfo. "Egyptian Group Denies Al-Qa'ida Ties". The Media Line. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 12 February 2011.
- ^ "Egyptian group denies al-Qaeda tie-up". Al Jazeera English. 6 August 2006. Retrieved 14 May 2014.
- ^ "Al-Gama'at Al-Islamiyya (IG)". Big, Allied and Dangerous (BAAD). University of Maryland. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
- ^ "Currently listed entities". Public Safety Canada. Government of Canada. 21 December 2018. Archived from the original on 28 July 2021. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
- ^ "impa_terror_eng_17012013". 10 August 2014. Archived from the original (DDL) on 10 August 2014. Retrieved 30 May 2020.
- ^ "BBC NEWS – Europe – Russia names 'terrorist' groups". Retrieved 10 February 2015.
External links
- Al-Ghuroba (Followers of Ahlus Sunnah wal Jama'ah)
- "Al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya". Archived from the original on 27 September 2001. Retrieved 25 February 2004. (Center for Nonproliferation Studies, Monterey Institute of International Studies)
- Article about Islamist resistance in Egypt
- Article in the Economist about more recent developments
- al-Gama'a al Islam home page
- Egypt's Jihad Group leader wants end to violence
- Violence won't work: how author of 'jihadists' bible' stirred up a storm
- The Rebellion Within a New Yorker article about terrorists renouncing violence, with significant attention paid to the Islamic Group