Read The Brotherhood: America's Next Great Enemy Online
Authors: Erick Stakelbeck
Tags: #Political Science / Political Ideologies / Conservatism & Liberalism
The Brotherhood: America's Next Great Enemy (21 page)
BOOK: The Brotherhood: America's Next Great Enemy
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Azzam al-Tamimi, former spokesman for the Jordanian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood and a longtime Hamas confidant, told me the following in an August 2012 interview I conducted with him via email:
Hamas is a part of the global Brotherhood. The relationship with the MB in Egypt is excellent and is expected to reflect in forms of cooperation that will ease things for the Palestinians. In his recent meetings in Cairo with Hamas leaders, President Morsi told these leaders that Egypt would do what they want.
17
I’m sure Israelis are comforted to hear that, not to mention American taxpayers, who continue to pour billions of dollars into Egypt and the Palestinian territories thanks to our government’s mindless Middle East policies.
In his book,
Hamas: A History From Within
, al-Tamimi, who now directs an Islamic think tank in London, describes an infamous 1983 meeting of global Brotherhood members that resulted in the decision to create Hamas and steer it toward violent jihad. Al-Tamimi writes:
Hamas: A History From Within
, al-Tamimi, who now directs an Islamic think tank in London, describes an infamous 1983 meeting of global Brotherhood members that resulted in the decision to create Hamas and steer it toward violent jihad. Al-Tamimi writes:
It is now known that Palestinian Ikhwan members in the diaspora had also been pressing for military action. Their efforts were assisted by the unification of their organizations at the end of the 1970s, a project that reached its culmination in the historic conference convened secretly in Amman in 1983. Representatives of the Palestinian Ikhwan attended from within Palestine, both from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, as well as from Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, the other Gulf countries, Europe, and the United States.
The purpose of the meeting was to lay the cornerstone for what became known as the Islamic “global project for Palestine,” a project proposed to the conference by the delegates from Kuwait. At this conference, a unanimous decision was taken to give financial and logistic support to the effort of the Ikhwan in Palestine to wage jihad.
18
[emphasis added]
Al-Tamimi goes on to describe how the Kuwaiti branch of the Muslim Brotherhood provided their Palestinian brethren with $70,000 in start-up money “to be used for the purchase of weapons and ammunition and to send a number of individuals to Amman to receive military training.” Thus, the seeds for Hamas were laid by the global Brotherhood in 1983. By the time the first Palestinian intifada against Israel erupted four years later, al-Tamimi writes, Hamas leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin had the group’s terror apparatus up and running in the form of two branches called al-Mujahidun al-Filastinyun (The Palestinian Mujahideen) and Majd (Glory). The former group was a military organization whose “main mission was to attack Israeli soldiers and Jewish settlers in the Gaza Strip,” while the latter was a security organization “whose principal task was to apprehend, prosecute, and execute Palestinian collaborators working for Israel.”
19
Both were eventually combined into Hamas’s current military wing, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades. The rest, as they say, is jihadi history. In the words of al-Tamimi:
19
Both were eventually combined into Hamas’s current military wing, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades. The rest, as they say, is jihadi history. In the words of al-Tamimi:
The project could not have been more successful. Today Hamas is seen by a good proportion of the Palestinians as the true and legitimate representative of the Palestinians .
20
Indeed. So what does that mean for the never-ending boondoggle known as the “Peace Process,” a black hole that sucks every U.S. administration in and quickly spits it out? Al-Tamimi offered me some illuminating advice:
Neither Hamas no[r] the MB will ever accept that Israel has the right to exist on land which they believe to be Arab and Islamic. Yet, a long-term truce arrangement allows for a de facto, not a de jure, recognition . . . yet, a Jewish state as in the Zionism project, will always be viewed as a colonial entity that will one day come to an end.
21
I think he just said, in essence, that the global Muslim Brotherhood will never recognize Israel’s right to exist and will actively work toward destroying the Jewish State. Nevertheless, somewhere in Foggy Bottom, a State Department bureaucrat is reading this right now and muttering to himself, “The Palestinians will come around soon. I just know it. Peace is achievable. If only Israel would give up more land, Hamas would stand down!” No, they won’t. In fact, Hamas sees jihad as the only way to “liberate all of Palestine.” According to the Hamas/MB insider, al-Tamimi:
Jihad is an Islamic duty to defend rights and rise against oppression. The global MB sees Israel as the occupying power that oppresses the Palestinians who have every right to resist and struggle for freedom. The violence used in this case is considered legitimate. This is not any different from what other nations who happen to be victims of colonialism would do.
22
With that, al-Tamimi articulated what is essentially the official Brotherhood policy on Hamas suicide bombings against Israel. In my interviews around the world with Brotherhood-connected individuals, regardless of country, they all give some variation of al-Tamimi’s answer. It usually goes something like this: “Hamas has a legitimate and internationally recognized right to resist an illegal occupation, and due to the desperate situation of the Palestinian people, has no other choice but to engage in suicide bombings against the vastly superior and ruthless Israeli military machine.” Obviously, al-Tamimi and the others have done an excellent job of coordinating their talking points on this subject; the discipline and synergy in their messaging is quintessential Ikhwan.
The various arguments excusing Hamas suicide attacks were largely crafted by Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, the Muslim Brotherhood’s revered and wildly influential Spiritual Guide. Al-Qaradawi, who reaches an audience of tens of millions across the Middle East each week with his highly rated Al-Jazeera program,
Sharia and Life
, is one of the most vocal proponents of Palestinian suicide bombings. Once he gave them his blessing and theological justification, the global Brotherhood was all in. And “bless” them al-Qaradawi has: frequently and enthusiastically. In countless interviews and sermons throughout the past three decades, he has argued for the necessity of Palestinian “martyrdom operations” against Israeli women and children and has assured his massive global audience that such attacks are perfectly consistent with the teachings of the Koran and hadiths. Al-Qaradawi, who is currently banned from entering the United States, once prayed on Al-Jazeera for Allah to kill every Jew, “down to the very last one.”
23
He summarized his position on Hamas suicide attacks in a 2010 interview on Egyptian television:
Sharia and Life
, is one of the most vocal proponents of Palestinian suicide bombings. Once he gave them his blessing and theological justification, the global Brotherhood was all in. And “bless” them al-Qaradawi has: frequently and enthusiastically. In countless interviews and sermons throughout the past three decades, he has argued for the necessity of Palestinian “martyrdom operations” against Israeli women and children and has assured his massive global audience that such attacks are perfectly consistent with the teachings of the Koran and hadiths. Al-Qaradawi, who is currently banned from entering the United States, once prayed on Al-Jazeera for Allah to kill every Jew, “down to the very last one.”
23
He summarized his position on Hamas suicide attacks in a 2010 interview on Egyptian television:
According to Islamic law, in any country that is invaded and occupied by foreign infidels, all the local people should conduct resistance against the occupation, using all the means at their disposal. The jurisprudents said that a woman can set out on Jihad without her husband’s permission, a child can set out on Jihad without his father’s permission, and a slave can set out without his master’s permission. All the people should set out on Jihad. . . .[The Jews] are the most miserly of all people and the most protective of their lives, yet they devote their lives and their money [to their cause]. The Muslims worldwide must contribute to the regaining of Palestine. Palestine is not merely Islamic land. It is the land of the Al-Aqsa Mosque and of the holy places.[ . . . ] The martyrdom operations which I approve are the ones that target the occupiers. That is why I sanctioned martyrdom operations in Palestine. When I was asked, in London, how I could permit martyrdom operations in Palestine, I said that they are a necessity, because these people want to defend themselves, the things that are holy to them, and their land. I said to them: “You want them to stop the martyrdom operations? Then give them Apache helicopters, planes, tanks, and missiles, and then they will abandon martyrdom operations.”
They do not have bombs, so they turn themselves into human bombs. This is a necessity.I permit this for the Palestinians, but not for those who attacked the Twin Towers in the US, because in that case, the passengers of four civilian planes were killed, who were not to blame. In what way were those passengers to blame? Many of them were Arabs or Muslims, and were from various countries, and had nothing whatsoever to do with politics. Take the people inside the towers—they were just employees in companies, and some were even Muslims, who prayed on Fridays. How were they to blame?I only sanction martyrdom operations in defense of a plundered and occupied land.
24
[emphasis added]
And that is the magical distinction that al-Qaradawi and other top Brotherhood ideologues always draw on to prove their inherent moderation. In their view, suicide bombings are perfectly acceptable in Israel, Chechnya, Bosnia, Afghanistan, Iraq, Kashmir, and other Islamic lands where Muslims are outgunned and “occupied” by infidel foreign powers. Al-Qaeda’s operations, on the other hand, are apparently a no-no in the eyes of Allah because they are offensive actions. Ironically, Sayyid Qutb, one of the Brotherhood’s most revered ideologues, was the modern-day godfather of “offensive jihad” and a major influence on al-Qaeda’s leadership. Let’s also remember that the Brotherhood and al-Qaeda share the exact same goals: sharia law for one and all and the establishment of a global caliphate. Their differences are tactical, not ideological.
With that in mind, it’s no coincidence that many of the same organizations and individuals who have been convicted of providing financial support to al-Qaeda since 9/11 also helped bankroll Hamas. In addition, when it comes to the United States, Palestinian Brotherhood leaders have engaged in a series of incendiary statements and actions in recent years that bear a striking resemblance to those of al-Qaeda. Some examples:
■ In 2004, leading Hamas operative Ismail Elbarasse was arrested after authorities witnessed his wife videotaping Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay Bridge from their SUV as Elbarasse drove. The photos taken by Elbarasse’s wife included close-ups of cables and other features “integral to the structural integrity of the bridge,” according to court papers.
25
During a raid of Elbarasse’s home that same year, federal agents uncovered documents revealing the Muslim Brotherhood’s strategic plan to conquer North America. Elbarasse has since fled the United States.
25
During a raid of Elbarasse’s home that same year, federal agents uncovered documents revealing the Muslim Brotherhood’s strategic plan to conquer North America. Elbarasse has since fled the United States.
■ Hamas’s influential political chief, Khaled Meshaal, has stated that, “[Hamas’s] battle is with two sides, one of them is the strongest power in the world, the United States, and the second is the strongest power in the region [Israel].”
26
Likewise, before being killed in a 2004 Israeli missile strike, Hamas leader Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi called on Iraqis to “strike and burn” U.S. forces and “teach them the lesson of the suicide actions.”
27
Al-Rantissi also published a piece, titled “Why Shouldn’t We Attack the United States?” on a Hamas website in which he wrote that striking America was not only “a moral and national duty” for Hamas, “but above all, a religious one.”
28
26
Likewise, before being killed in a 2004 Israeli missile strike, Hamas leader Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi called on Iraqis to “strike and burn” U.S. forces and “teach them the lesson of the suicide actions.”
27
Al-Rantissi also published a piece, titled “Why Shouldn’t We Attack the United States?” on a Hamas website in which he wrote that striking America was not only “a moral and national duty” for Hamas, “but above all, a religious one.”
28
■ In 2006,
Time
magazine reported that Hamas was considering broadening its jihad to include U.S. targets. According to
Time
’s account:
Time
magazine reported that Hamas was considering broadening its jihad to include U.S. targets. According to
Time
’s account:
In furtive, underground meetings held in the West Bank and Gaza, a growing number of Hamas commanders say they are running out of patience with the U.S. and want to strike back. Insiders say the radicals are trying to exploit the exasperation within the movement at what they perceive as the Bush Administration’s one-sided support of Israel and its attempts to press Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to dissolve the Hamas cabinet.“The U.S. has become very hostile to the Palestinians,” one Hamas field commander told TIME. “We shouldn’t stand by idly while the Americans are plotting against us.”
29
Seven years on, these potential plans seem to have been put on hold indefinitely, or at least until the time is right. Perhaps that time is sooner than we think.
■ In an August 2012 appearance on Hamas’s Al-Aqsa TV, the Deputy Speaker of the Hamas parliament, Sheik Ahmed Bahr, bellowed, “Oh Allah, destroy the Jews and their supporters. Oh Allah, destroy the Americans and their supporters. Oh Allah, count them one by one, and kill them all, without leaving a single one.” He also declared that jihad was a duty incumbent on every Muslim, and that women could engage in jihad without their husbands’ permission in order to “annihilate those Jews.”
30
30
Perhaps the ultimate indicator of the Egyptian and Palestinian Brothers’ continued shared affinity for violent jihad was their reaction to the death of Osama bin Laden in May 2011. The Brotherhood in Cairo condemned the killing of the terrorist mass murderer, and the Brothers’ Palestinian branch, Hamas, mourned bin Laden’s passing as well. Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh said, “We condemn the assassination of a Muslim and Arab warrior and we pray to God that his soul rests in peace. We regard this as the continuation of the American oppression and shedding of blood of Muslims and Arabs.”
31
31
On 9/11, after learning the Twin Towers had been destroyed, Palestinian women and children were filmed dancing in the streets. A decade later, bin Laden was still a hero to Hamas.
BOOK: The Brotherhood: America's Next Great Enemy
8.98Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
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