MB takes on the role of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Getting desperate to achieve their
political agenda, radical movements and groups would promptly seek to form
armed militias. The military wings are given the signal to hit when parent
movements discover that their political manifestoes would not attract attention
in society. In the meantime, some
political groups would seek armed confrontation to compel the government to
give in to demands as dictated by foreign parties.
Acting differently, religious groups,
which adopt extremist and fundamentalist charter, are giving top priority to
the formation of armed militias to help change violently the allegedly kafir
(blasphemous) society. The use of
violence for changing societies would take the form of violent protests,
vandalism and riots against the government institutions or the people.
The Muslim Brotherhood is a case in
point. Since its birth in 1928, it had concealed its violent agenda under a political
veil. Following such a cynical and misleading posturing, the MB put on the mask
of democracy to field its candidates in general elections held by trade unions
and municipality.
Following the advice of its founder
Hassan el-Bana, the MB compared democracy for being the Trojan Horse. El-Bana
had a strong belief that ostensibly riding democracy would help him realise his
lifelong dream of establishing the Muslim Caliphate across the world. In the
meantime, el-Bana instructed his aides to form armed militias to help declare his
organisation the Master of World.
The following account is shedding light
on the history of the MB since its birth. Also, on the focus is the Qotbiya
school named after its founder Sayed Qotb, the godfather of militant groups,
which tucked their heads under the MB’s cloak. An analysis herein of the MB’s
relations with President Gamal Abdel-Nasser and his successors Anwar Sadat and
Hosni Mubarak attempts to reveal the reasons behind its catastrophic collapse on
30 June 2013.
To begin with, the MB strongly
regarded Jihad (the holy war) as the best and the most effective strategy to
cause radical changes in society. In his message to the group’s 5th
Congress, Hassan el-Bana increased the enthusiasm of the attendees by reminding
them that Islam celebrates the use of force. The group’s founder quoted Prophet
Mohamed as praying that strong Muslims are those, who are immune to weakness,
laziness and defeatism.
El-Bana urged his followers to
appreciate loyalty, unity—and guns—were the most important factors in
preserving the group’s strength. He also celebrated violence and military
confrontation as the best means to maintain unshakable unity and faith. In his
alleged Message of Jihad, the founder said: “Nations, which are clever in
death-making and know how to die with dignity, should be confident that with
Allah’s blessing they will enjoy the present life; and upon death they will
have eternal life in the Paradise.”
Denouncing peaceful means, el-Bana warned
his followers that non-violent revolutions would not by any means help cause
cherished changes. Likewise, Sayed Qotb,
who is the author of the MB’s violent ideology, discounted peaceful calls for Islam
by saying that they were not enough alone to lay the foundations of the Muslim
State. Qotb, who was one of the powerful men in the MB’s Guidance Board, was a
staunch advocate of the idea that bloody revolutions and assassinations were
indispensable for eradicating the alleged kingdom of evil and set up the
kingdom of God instead.
Qotb’s belligerent exhortation led to
the formation in the late 1930s of factions called initially the Scouts. The
MB’s Scouts was walking in the footsteps of armed militias formed by Benito Mussolini,
the leader of the National Fascist Party in Italy. El-Bana and Qotb sought the Scouts as the
nucleus of armed militias euphemistically called the Special Organisation,
which could spearhead the Jihad. The MB-linked SO was disclosed during a clandestine
meeting el-Bana had in 1940 with some of the MB’s leading members. El-Bana’s
confidants during the meeting included Saleh Ashmawi and Hussein
Kamal-Eddin. During that meeting, he disclosed
the tasks to be entrusted to the SO. He also pledged that this military wing would
be funded by donations from the group’s members.
The veil of secrecy surrounding el-Bana’s SO in
society was lifted in the late 1940s during investigations conducted into a
criminal case known at that time as ‘The Jeep Case’. It was revealed that SO’s members were
recruited from physically strong young people. Before entrusting them with
their special tasks, the new recruits had to undergo rigorous training sessions
to increase their skills in martial law and military activities. During
ego-pampering sessions, the recruits were groomed for sacrificing their lives in
the forthcoming holy war.
The SO’s echelon was divided to three
levels tied to different tasks: civil, military and security. In addition, the
SO had armament department and an intelligence agency. Its Command was managed
by cell-like council with each having five emirs, who should swear an oath of
loyalty to the MB’s General Guide or his representative.
The SO’s hit men were unleashed to
hunt officials or activists, who opposed the parent group. For example, they
were held responsible for the assassination of chief justice Ahmed
el-Khazendar. The OS’s assassins also gunned down Prime Minister Ahmed Maher a
year after he assumed his office in 1944. And after three years, the OS’s hit
squad shot dead Prime Minister Mahmoud el-Noukrachi.
They also attempted to torch the archive
of the Court of Appeal to destroy records of hearing sessions, which could
indict them for several criminal cases, including two assassination attempts
against Prime Minister Ibrahim Abdel-Hadi and the Speaker of the Parliament in
the 1940s.
Since its establishment, the MB used
to play the role of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Under the monarchy, the group
sought to win favour with the royal palace. Its leaders used to praise late King
Farouk for being the pride of Egypt’s youth. In the meantime, the group’s
leaders were having secret meeting with anti-monarch movement and political
parties. The MB also conspired with national movements to oust King Farouk, who
was viewed as an obstacle hindering the implantation of political reforms in
Egypt. A series of assassinations and violent attacks prompted the government
at that time to dissolve the group.
King Farouk was dethroned on 23 July
1952, and a military regime led by President Gamal Abdel-Nasser seized power in
Egypt. Sayed Qotb was one of lobbyists, who shouted slogans in support of the
Egyptian revolution. He went so far as to describe it as the greatest rebellion
in Egypt’s modern history. In an acknowledgement of his support, the
Revolutionary Command Council appointed Qotb its adviser of Labour and Cultural
Affairs. He was the only civilian allowed to sit next to army officers during
RCC’s sessions.
The MB’s leaders were, nonetheless,
alarmed by Abdel-Nasser’s firm and assertive policies. They also suspected that
Abdel-Nasser was compromising the Muslim Sharia, replacing it with his
self-made tenets. Qotb stepped forward to declare that Abdel-Nasser was an
illegitimate—religiously—ruler, who should be ousted. Qotb’s anti-Nasser attack
was inspired by the violent ideology preached by Pakistani guru Abu-al-Ala
al-Mawudodi. Since then, Qotb has been notorious for being the godfather of
religious movements, which legitimise violence in its bid to take law into
their hands.
Qotb established the school of
Hakimiyya (religious code of governance). He stressed the necessity of forming
armed militias in the vanguard to resist pagan society. In addition to the MB, Islamist groups and
movements dug their violent ideology out of Qotb’s books, such as “This
Religion”, “The Future Is for This Religion” and “Road Signs”.
The love-and-hate relations between the
MB and the regime of President Abdel-Nasser ended tragically as a result of the
outbreak of irreconcilable differences. Abdel-Nasser launched crackdowns on the
group and its leaders, including RCC’s former civilian adviser. Led handcuffed
and blindfolded to prison, they were accused of planning bombing attacks on government
institutions. The suspects were also accused of attempting to smuggle weapons
to Egypt from the Sudan. The
confrontation between the regime of Abdel-Nasser and MB took tragic dimensions
after he narrowly escaped an assassination attempt as he was addressing a mass
rally in Alexandria.
Abdel-Nasser was persuaded to relax
his grip on the group after he deepened his authority and reinforced stability
in the country. He also reversed tough measures he had taken against the group
after he was given local and regional
credit for championing anti-colonial struggle. The group’s detainees, who were
still on trial, were released in mid-Fifties. Bigger numbers of the MB’s prisoners
were, however, set free in 1960 after serving their sentences.
All detainees belonging to the MB,
including Sayed Qotb, were evacuated from prison between 1961 and 1965. The
group’s General Guide Hassan el-Hodeibi was nonetheless, released for health
reasons. Further, the government endorsed a decree, which allowed the
rehabilitation of MB-linked employees, who lost their jobs as a result of their
loyalty to the group.
However, refusing to bury their
differences with Abdel-Nasser, the MB, shortly after their crisis was over,
disappeared underground to plan the revival of their violent activities. They
were determined to exact revenge on Abdel-Nasser and his revolutionary
comrades. The MB’s powerful men were also determined to remove Abdel-Nasser’s
military regime, which aborted their lifelong dream of establishing the Muslim
caliphate.
The MB reared its head again after
Abdel-Nasser died and Anwar Sadat was declared his successor (1970-1981). Sadat
decided to weave an extraordinary relationship with the group. He ordered the
government to tolerate the rise of fundamentalism and extremism in
universities, trade unions and government offices. Science & Faith became
the motto of Sadat’s regime. He mobilised Islamists to defend him against his
predecessor’s lobbyists, who formed the National Nasserist Trend.
Unfortunately, Sadat’s support to
fundamentalism and extremism in society backfired. Radical groups, such as Al-Jihad,
Jamaat-e-Islami and Takfeer wa Hijara decided to divorce the parent MB and
fight for the implementation of their own objectives. The renegades included
Al-Jihad-linked militant group formed by a notorious jihadist, Salaeh Seriyya,
who led the deadly attack on the Military Technical Academy in 1974.
Takfir wa Hijra
This particular militant group had an extraordinary
birthplace. Takfir wa Hijra was born in prison at the hands of a jihadist named
Shukri Msotafa, a former member of the MB, to take revenge on Abdel-Nasser and
his successor Sadat for hanging Sayed Qotb and other heavyweight members of the
parent group.
According to Shukri’s doctrine, Muslim societies, which
do not honour the Muslim Sharia, should be condemned as kafir (blasphemous). He
exhorted his followers to disown blasphemous societies and use force to remove
the kafir regimes and seize power.
Granted presidential pardon in 1973, Shukri escorted
members of his Takfir wa Hijra to a training camp he opened in the Upper
Egyptian city of Menia.
Takifr wa Hijra alarmed Sadat’s security authorities
after assassinating ex-Minister of Awkaf Sheikh Hussein el-Dhabi. In addition
to Shukri, five assassins were arrested and hanged in 1977.
Jamaa Islamiya
Jamaa Islamiya was formed in the 1970s of the last
century by a group of Islamist students, who disowned the parent MB. The allegedly
breakaway jihadist group managed to have stronghold in Upper Egyptian villages.
Its emirs used force to impose bizarre code of ethics. They banned music,
alcohol, traditional wedding parties, cinema and theatre. Couples walking in
public areas were attacked by an allegedly disciplinary team linked to Jamaa
Islamiya.
Jamaa Islamiya terrorized the Egyptians (from 1986 to
1997) by launching deadly attacks on civilians and the police in Upper Egypt.
Tourists were also on its hit list. In 1997, the militant group committed a
gruesome massacre in Hatshepsut Temple in Luxor by gunning down 58 tourists. It
also attempted to assassinate ex-President Hosni Mubarak during a state visit
he paid to Addis Abba to take part in the African summit in 1995.
Jamaa Islamiya’s leaders confessed to their interrogators
that they were loyal to Sayed Qotb and his writings and ideas. They explained
that their revolt against the MB was caused by its leanings to the government.
Al-Jihad
This violent group was initially formed by lobbyists of
Sayed Qotb. They were also influenced by Ibn Taymiyya, a guru who called for the
use of force and violence to found the Muslim state.
Al-Jihad’s deadly attack on the Military Technical
Academy was part of a coup its leaders planned against Sadat. The group’s deadliest attack was,
nevertheless, its assassination of President Sadat during a military parade on
6 October 1981 for signing Camp David peace accord with Israel.
Al-Jihad was also behind a series of car bomb attacks
to assassinate ex-President Hosni Mubarak. Notorious for being the most violent Islamist group, Al-Jihad also
claimed its responsibility for the bombing of the building of the Egyptian
embassy in Pakistan. After a series of counterattacks in late
1990s, the Egyptian security authorities managed
to overpower Al-Jihad and arrest its big men.
The confrontation between the Egyptian
authorities and Islamist groups took a new turn after the assassination of Sadat
in 1981. His successor ex-President Hosni Mubarak declared a state of emergency
in the country. Hundreds of terrorists belonging to Al-Jihad and Jamaa Islamiya were
arrested. According to Mubarak’s carrot-and-stick policy, the MB managed to survived
massive crackdown launched by the security authorities on Islamists and their
movements. While somehow relaxing its grip on the group, Mubarak’s regime
decided to put its powerful men under close scrutiny. However, they were
allowed to maintain their charity activities. As a result, the MB opened more outreach
centres and charity projects in rural and Upper Egyptian areas. Seizing the
opportunity, the MB manouevred successfully to have control on trade unions,
universities and schools. It also attempted to create a media apparatus
parallel to the state-run media and press.
Reciprocating, the MB denounced
violence exercised by Islamist groups. Although it protested to the
government’s alleged election rigging, the MB cautiously assessed its steps to
avoid any direct confrontation with the security authorities. Its leaders also
condemned the assassination of civilians and the police.
Upon the outbreak of mass protests on
January 25, 2011 against ex-President Hosni Mubarak, the MB cynically refused to
jump on the conclusion prematurely and enter the fray. Its leaders decided to unfurl
the group’s banners in main squares only after realizing that Mubarak regime
was on the brink of collapse.
The MB quickly gained a foothold in
society so strong that its Freedom and Justice Party won 43% of the votes in the
first general elections held after the January revolution. In a bid to win the
support of bigger numbers of the Egyptian people, the group sang songs for
democracy, and denounced violence and armed attacks on public and private
properties. Its ostensible support to democracy produced fruits when its
candidate Mohamed Morsi won the presidential elections.
Nonetheless, the MB rebelled against
its former supporters and lobyyists, political movements and parties, when they
demanded sincere implementation of democratic rules.
The situation got worse and more
alarming after the MB encouraged violent and militant groups to come forward
and help shed the blood of its opponents. The group also insulted the Egyptians
and their war heroes when it rehabilitated terrorists and assassins, such as
Aboud el-Zomor and Khaled el-Islamboli, and declared them national icons.
The Egyptian revolution on 30 June
2013 turned a new chapter in Egypt. Tens of millions of the Egyptian people
camped on this day in main squares across the country. The demonstrators called
for the immediate removal of Islamists and the MB’s President Mohamed Morsi
from power.
Morsi’s departure prompted the
MB-linked armed militias to take up arms to launch deadly attacks on public and private property, the
army, the police and innocent civilians. A statement by MP Reda Fahmi, Chairman
of the Shura’s Council Defence Committee, refuted the MB’s allegations that it
had no link with these terrorists. Fahmi, who was one of the group’s powerful members,
described an armed militia called Hasm as a nationalist liberation movement. Hasm
also revealed its strong contacts with the MB when it mourned the death of the
parent group’s ex-General Guide Mahdi Akef.
Investigations disclosed that Hasm was
responsible for the assassination attempt against Egypt’s ex-Mufti Sheikh Ali
Goumaa on 5 August 2016. It also attempted to assassinate assistant Public
Prosecutor Zakaria Abdel-Aziz Osman on 29 September 2016.
The Revolution Flag
