Ibrahim al-Makadmeh ( ar, ابراهيم المقادمة) (1952 – 8 March 2003) was a

Palestinian Palestinians ( ar, الفلسطينيون, ; he, פָלַסְטִינִים, ) or Palestinian people ( ar, الشعب الفلسطيني, label=none, ), also referred to as Palestinian Arabs ( ar, الفلسطينيين العرب, label=non ...

and

Hamas Hamas (, ; , ; an acronym of , "Islamic Resistance Movement") is a Palestinian Sunni-Islamic fundamentalist, militant, and nationalist organization. It has a social service wing, Dawah, and a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Bri ...

senior leader in the

Gaza Strip The Gaza Strip (;The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p.761 "Gaza Strip /'gɑːzə/ a strip of territory under the control of the Palestinian National Authority and Hamas, on the SE Mediterranean coast including the town of Gaza.. ...

who was killed by Israeli forces. Makadmeh, one of Hamas' founders and a leader of the group's military wing, was accused of engineering several attacks that killed 28 Israelis.

Biography

Al-Makadmeh, age 52, was the father of seven children. He was a devoted preacher and political activist opposed to the Israeli occupation of

Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...

. He was born in 1952, four years after his family was expelled from the village of

Yibna Yibna ( ar, يبنى; ''Jabneh'' or ''Jabneel'' in Biblical times; ''Jamnia'' in Roman times; '' Ibelin'' to the Crusaders), or Tel Yavne is an archaeological site and depopulated Palestinian town. The ruins are located immediately southeast of t ...

, south-west of Jerusalem, when Israel was created. Al-Makadmeh's family fled to the refugee camps at

Bureij Bureij ( ar, البريج) is a Palestinian refugee camp located in the central Gaza Strip east of the Salah al-Din Road in the Deir al-Balah Governorate. The camp's total land area is 529 dunums and in 2005, it had a population of 34,951 with ...

and later moved to

Jabalia Jabalia also Jabalya ( ar, جباليا) is a Palestinian Palestinians ( ar, الفلسطينيون, ; he, פָלַסְטִינִים, ) or Palestinian people ( ar, الشعب الفلسطيني, label=none, ), also referred to as Palestini ...

. After graduating from secondary school in Jabalia, al-Makadmeh studied dentistry in Egypt where he adopted the Islamist ideology of the

Muslim Brotherhood The Society of the Muslim Brothers ( ar, جماعة الإخوان المسلمين'' ''), better known as the Muslim Brotherhood ( ', is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by Islamic scholar and schoolteacher Hassan ...

. When he returned to Gaza, al-Makadmeh began organizing th Palestinian Islamist movement and a few years later, he and Sheikh

Ahmed Yassin Sheikh Ahmed Ismail Hassan Yassin ( ar, الشيخ أحمد إسماعيل حسن ياسين; 1 January 1937 – 22 March 2004) was a Palestinian politician and imam who founded Hamas, a militant Islamist and Palestinian nationalist organiz ...

founded

, the Palestinian Islamic resistance movement. In 1984, the Israelis arrested, charged and convicted al-Makadmeh with possessing and supplying arms to Palestinian

militants The English word ''militant'' is both an adjective and a noun, and it is generally used to mean vigorously active, combative and/or aggressive, especially in support of a cause, as in "militant reformers". It comes from the 15th century Latin ...

. During his eight years in Israeli prisons he allegedly was subjected to physical and psychological torture. In 1992, he was released from prison and began working as dentist at the Shifa Hospital in Gaza while continuing his Hamas activities. His harsh criticisms of

Palestinian Authority The Palestinian National Authority (PA or PNA; ar, السلطة الوطنية الفلسطينية '), commonly known as the Palestinian Authority and officially the State of Palestine,

corruption and the

Oslo Accords The Oslo Accords are a pair of agreements between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO): the Oslo I Accord, signed in Washington, D.C., in 1993;

, as well as vocal support for Hamas attacks on Israel, led the Palestinian Authority to arrest him several times. He was detained for three years without charge or trial and allegedly was tortured in custody, this time by Palestinian authorities.

Killing

Al-Makadmeh and three of his aides were killed when three Israeli Apache

helicopter gunship A gunship is a military aircraft armed with heavy aircraft guns, primarily intended for attacking ground targets either as airstrike or as close air support. In modern usage the term "gunship" refers to fixed-wing aircraft having laterally-mo ...

s fired up to five missiles at the car he was in as it drove down a street in downtown Gaza City. Makadmeh's killing came after Hamas claimed responsibility for an attack Friday on a Jewish settlement that left two dead, and a Haifa bus 37 massacre which killed 17 civilians. According to family members, al-Makadmeh anticipated his killing by Israel for his leadership role in Hamas. A few days before his death, he said, "Our homeland will not be liberated and our people will not be freed from Jewish enslavement and occupation without sacrifices. Freedom has a price, and the price is blood." The

Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the Israel, State of Israel. It consists of three servic ...

announced the killing saying that al-Makadmeh "deserved liquidation", for "masterminding terrorist activities against Israeli civilians and soldiers." A Hamas spokesman in Gaza dismissed the Israeli allegations as "cheap lies", claiming that al-Makadmeh was a political leader. Israeli Defence Minister

Shaul Mofaz Shaul Mofaz ( he, שאול מופז; 4 November 1948) is a retired Israeli military officer and politician. He joined the Israel Defense Forces in 1966 and served in the Paratroopers Brigade. He fought in the Six-Day War, Yom Kippur War, 1982 L ...

said that Israel would go after "other leaders" from Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

References

External links

Hamas Vows To Avenge Leader's Death
(CBS News)

(''Al-Ahram'')

(''Al-Ahram'')

(Washington Institute for Near East Policy) {{DEFAULTSORT:Makadmeh, Ibrahim 1952 births 2003 deaths Assassinated Hamas members People from the Gaza Strip Palestinian casualties in the Second Intifada

Biography

Killing

See also

References

External links