Izz ad-Din Abd al-Qadar ibn Mustafa ibn Yusuf ibn Muhammad al-Qassam (1881 or 19 December 1882 – 20 November 1935) ( ar, عز الدين بن عبد القادر بن مصطفى بن يوسف بن محمد القسام /
ALA-LC
ALA-LC (American Library AssociationLibrary of Congress) is a set of standards for romanization, the representation of text in other writing systems using the Latin script.
Applications
The system is used to represent bibliographic information by ...
: ) was a Syrian Muslim preacher, and a leader in the local struggles against
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
and
French Mandatory rule in the
Levant
The Levant () is an approximate historical geographical term referring to a large area in the Eastern Mediterranean region of Western Asia. In its narrowest sense, which is in use today in archaeology and other cultural contexts, it is eq ...
, and a militant opponent of
Zionism
Zionism ( he, צִיּוֹנוּת ''Tsiyyonut'' after ''Zion'') is a Nationalism, nationalist movement that espouses the establishment of, and support for a homeland for the Jewish people centered in the area roughly corresponding to what is ...
in the 1920s and 1930s.
Al-Qassam studied at
Al-Azhar University
, image = جامعة_الأزهر_بالقاهرة.jpg
, image_size = 250
, caption = Al-Azhar University portal
, motto =
, established =
*970/972 first foundat ...
in Egypt and afterward became an
Islamic revival
Islamic revival ( ar, تجديد'' '', lit., "regeneration, renewal"; also ', "Islamic awakening") refers to a revival of the Islamic religion. The revivers are known in Islam as ''mujaddids''.
Within the Islamic tradition, ''tajdid'' has bee ...
ist preacher in his hometown of
Jableh
)
, settlement_type = City
, motto =
, image_skyline = Jableh Collage.jpg
, imagesize = 250px
, image_caption = General view of city and port • Roman Amphitheater• Al ...
in Syria during the last years of
Ottoman rule. Following his return, he became an active supporter of the
Libyan resistance
The Libyan resistance movement was the rebel force opposing the Italian Empire during its Pacification of Libya between 1923 and 1932.
History First years
The Libyan resistance, associated with the Senussi Order, was initially led by Omar Muk ...
to
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
rule, raising funds and fighters to aid the Libyans and penning an anthem for them. He would later lead his own group of rebels in alliance with
Ibrahim Hananu to fight against French Mandatory forces in northern Syria in 1919–20.
Following the rebels' defeat, he immigrated to
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 ...
, where he became a Muslim ''
waqf
A waqf ( ar, وَقْف; ), also known as hubous () or '' mortmain'' property is an inalienable charitable endowment under Islamic law. It typically involves donating a building, plot of land or other assets for Muslim religious or charitabl ...
'' (religious endowments) official and grew incensed at the plight of
Palestinian Arab
Palestinians ( ar, الفلسطينيون, ; he, פָלַסְטִינִים, ) or Palestinian people ( ar, الشعب الفلسطيني, label=none, ), also referred to as Palestinian Arabs ( ar, الفلسطينيين العرب, label=non ...
peasants. In the 1930s, he formed bands of local fighters and launched attacks against British and
Jew
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""Th ...
ish targets. He was eventually killed in a manhunt following his alleged role in the killing of a British policeman. Israeli historian
Tom Segev
Tom Segev ( he, תום שגב; born March 1, 1945) is an Israeli historian, author and journalist. He is associated with Israel's New Historians, a group challenging many of the country's traditional narratives.
Biography
Segev was born in Jerus ...
has called him 'the Arab
Joseph Trumpeldor
Joseph Vladimirovich (Volfovich) Trumpeldor (21 November 1880 – 1 March 1920, he, יוֹסֵף טְרוּמְפֶּלְדוֹר , russian: Иосиф Владимирович (Вольфович) Трумпельдор ) was an early Zionist a ...
'. His campaign and death were factors that led to the
1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine
The 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine, later known as The Great Revolt (''al-Thawra al- Kubra'') or The Great Palestinian Revolt (''Thawrat Filastin al-Kubra''), was a popular nationalist uprising by Palestinian Arabs in Mandatory Palestine a ...
.
Early life and Muslim scholarship
![Mosque El Azhar (1906) - TIMEA](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/55/Mosque_El_Azhar_%281906%29_-_TIMEA.jpg)
Al-Qassam was born in
Jableh
)
, settlement_type = City
, motto =
, image_skyline = Jableh Collage.jpg
, imagesize = 250px
, image_caption = General view of city and port • Roman Amphitheater• Al ...
, northwestern
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
, to father Abd al-Qadar, a
Sharia
Sharia (; ar, شريعة, sharīʿa ) is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the religious precepts of Islam and is based on the sacred scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran and the H ...
court official during
Ottoman rule and a local leader of the Qadariyya
Sufi
Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, ...
order. His grandfather had been a leading sheikh of the
Qadariyya order and moved to Jableh from Iraq. Al-Qassam also followed the
Hanafi
The Hanafi school ( ar, حَنَفِية, translit=Ḥanafiyah; also called Hanafite in English), Hanafism, or the Hanafi fiqh, is the oldest and one of the four traditional major Sunni schools ( maddhab) of Islamic Law (Fiqh). It is named aft ...
''
fiqh
''Fiqh'' (; ar, فقه ) is Islamic jurisprudence. Muhammad-> Companions-> Followers-> Fiqh.
The commands and prohibitions chosen by God were revealed through the agency of the Prophet in both the Quran and the Sunnah (words, deeds, and ...
'' (school of jurisprudence) of
Sunni Islam
Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagre ...
and studied at the local Istambuli Mosque under the teaching of well-known ''
′alim'' (scholar) Sheikh Salim Tayarah.
[Schleifer, ed. Burke, 1993, p. 166.]
Sometime between 1902 and 1905, al-Qassam left for
Cairo
Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...
to study at the
al-Azhar Mosque
Al-Azhar Mosque ( ar, الجامع الأزهر, al-Jāmiʿ al-ʾAzhar, lit=The Resplendent Congregational Mosque, arz, جامع الأزهر, Gāmiʿ el-ʾazhar), known in Egypt simply as al-Azhar, is a mosque in Cairo, Egypt in the histori ...
. Who he studied with is disputed by sources; some accounts say he studied under the Muslim reformist scholar
Muhammad Abduh
; "The Theology of Unity")
, alma_mater = Al-Azhar University
, office1 = Grand Mufti of Egypt
, term1 = 1899 – 1905
, Sufi_order = Shadhiliyya
, disciple_of =
, awards =
, infl ...
and came into contact with the prominent proto-
Salafist
The Salafi movement or Salafism () is a reform branch movement within Sunni Islam that originated during the nineteenth century. The name refers to advocacy of a return to the traditions of the "pious predecessors" (), the first three generati ...
,
Rashid Rida
Muḥammad Rashīd ibn ʿAlī Riḍā ibn Muḥammad Shams al-Dīn ibn Muḥammad Bahāʾ al-Dīn ibn Munlā ʿAlī Khalīfa (23 September 1865 or 18 October 1865 – 22 August 1935 CE/ 1282 - 1354 AH), widely known as Sayyid Rashid Rida ( ar, ...
,
who himself studied under Abduh, while others are skeptical of al-Qassam's relationships with either. However, the attitude al-Qassam later adopted toward the political issues in the Arab world suggests he was well-acquainted with the ideas Abduh and Rida espoused. At al-Azhar, al-Qassam developed the thinking that would guide his future activism. Critical of a stagnant Islam, he preached among the ranks of farmers and other locals about the necessity for a modern Islam, one capable of defending itself from Western
colonialism
Colonialism is a practice or policy of control by one people or power over other people or areas, often by establishing colonies and generally with the aim of economic dominance. In the process of colonisation, colonisers may impose their relig ...
through ''
jihad
Jihad (; ar, جهاد, jihād ) is an Arabic word which literally means "striving" or "struggling", especially with a praiseworthy aim. In an Islamic context, it can refer to almost any effort to make personal and social life conform with Go ...
'' (holy struggle). He returned to Jableh in 1909 as an ''′alim'' and worked as a teacher at a Qadariyya ''
madrasa
Madrasa (, also , ; Arabic: مدرسة , pl. , ) is the Arabic word for any type of educational institution, secular or religious (of any religion), whether for elementary instruction or higher learning. The word is variously transliterated '' ...
'' (Islamic school) where he taught both the mystical practices of the Qadariyya Sufi order and the jurisprudence and commentary of the
Qur'an
The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , sing. ...
. In addition he preached as the
imam
Imam (; ar, إمام '; plural: ') is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Muslims, Imam is most commonly used as the title of a worship leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Islamic worship services, lead prayers, ser ...
of the Ibrahim Ibn Adham Mosque.
[Schleifer, ed. Burke, 1993, p. 167.]
Following his return to Jableh, al-Qassam commenced a program of Islamic revival based on moral reforms which included the encouragement of maintaining regular ''
salaah
(, plural , romanized: or Old Arabic ͡sˤaˈloːh, ( or Old Arabic ͡sˤaˈloːtʰin construct state) ), also known as ( fa, نماز) and also spelled , are prayers performed by Muslims. Facing the , the direction of the Kaaba wi ...
'' (prayer) and the ''
sawm
In Islam, fasting (known as ''Sawm'', ar, ; . Or ''Siyam'', ar, ; , also commonly known as Rūzeh or Rōzah, fa, روزه in non-Arab Muslim countries) is the practice of abstaining, usually from food, drink, smoking, and sexual activity. ...
'' (fasting) during
Ramadan
, type = islam
, longtype = Religious
, image = Ramadan montage.jpg
, caption=From top, left to right: A crescent moon over Sarıçam, Turkey, marking the beginning of the Islamic month of Ramadan. Ramadan Quran reading in Bandar Torkaman, Iran. ...
as well as advocating an end to gambling and alcohol consumption. Al-Qassam's campaign highly influenced Jableh's residents who increasingly adopted his reforms. He developed amiable relations with the local Ottoman police who he would call upon to enforce Sharia law on rare cases of major violations. In some occasions, he would send disciples as vigilantes to intercept caravans transporting alcohol which would then be disposed of. Despite the support for
Arab nationalism
Arab nationalism ( ar, القومية العربية, al-Qawmīya al-ʿArabīya) is a nationalist ideology that asserts the Arabs are a nation and promotes the unity of Arab people, celebrating the glories of Arab civilization, the language an ...
from some of his fellow alumni at al-Azhar and among Syrian notables, al-Qassam's loyalties most likely laid with the Ottoman Empire as his relationship with the authorities would indicate.
[Schleifer, ed. Burke, 1993, p. 168.] He was well-regarded among much of Jableh's population where he gained a reputation for piety, simple manners and good humor.
Support for Libyan resistance
Following Italy's
September 1911 invasion of Libya, al-Qassam began collecting funds in Jableh for the joint Ottoman-
Libyan resistance movement
The Libyan resistance movement was the rebel force opposing the Italian Empire during its Pacification of Libya between 1923 and 1932.
History First years
The Libyan resistance, associated with the Senussi Order, was initially led by Omar Muk ...
and composed a victory anthem. Jableh's district governor sought to gain control over the fundraiser and when locals nevertheless continued to send their donations to al-Qassam, he attempted to have him jailed. The district governor alleged that al-Qassam was working against the Ottoman state, but an official investigation found him not guilty and the governor was consequently dismissed.
In June 1912, during one of his
Friday prayer
In Islam, Friday prayer or Congregational prayer ( ar, صَلَاة ٱلْجُمُعَة, ') is a prayer ('' ṣalāt'') that Muslims hold every Friday, after noon instead of the Zuhr prayer. Muslims ordinarily pray five times each day according ...
sermons, he called for volunteers to engage in a ''jihad'' against the Italians.
Accepting only volunteers with prior Ottoman military training, al-Qassam enlisted dozens of volunteers and set up a fund for the expedition to Libya as well as a small pension for the families of volunteers while they were abroad. Although accounts vary, al-Qassam was accompanied by 60 to 250 volunteers known as ''
mujahideen
''Mujahideen'', or ''Mujahidin'' ( ar, مُجَاهِدِين, mujāhidīn), is the plural form of ''mujahid'' ( ar, مجاهد, mujāhid, strugglers or strivers or justice, right conduct, Godly rule, etc. doers of jihād), an Arabic term th ...
'' (those who engage in jihad) when he arrived in
Alexandretta in the latter part of that year. Intending to gain sea transportation from the Ottomans, al-Qassam's request was rejected by the authorities who ordered him and his men back to Jableh. A new Ottoman government in
Istanbul
Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
had gained power and shifted the state's focus to the
Balkan
The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
front in October, abandoning the Libyan resistance. Part of the money that was raised was then used to establish a ''madrasa'' in Jableh while the remainder was saved for future efforts.
[Schleifer, ed. Burke, 1993, p. 169.]
Anti-French resistance in Syria
![French Army occupied Syrian coast 1920](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/French_Army_occupied_Syrian_coast_1920.jpg)
He later enlisted in the
Ottoman army
The military of the Ottoman Empire ( tr, Osmanlı İmparatorluğu'nun silahlı kuvvetleri) was the armed forces of the Ottoman Empire.
Army
The military of the Ottoman Empire can be divided in five main periods. The foundation era covers the ...
when World War I broke out, where he received military training and was attached as a chaplain to a base near
Damascus
)), is an adjective which means "spacious".
, motto =
, image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg
, image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg
, seal_type = Seal
, map_caption =
, ...
.
[Segev, 1999, pp.360–362] Returning to Jableh before the war's end, al-Qassam used funds from his planned expedition to Libya to organize a local defense force to fight the
French occupation. His principal role in the local resistance was financing the acquisition of weapons for Jableh's militia. By 1919, French forces moved into the coastal area of northern Syria while
Faisal I
Faisal I bin Al-Hussein bin Ali Al-Hashemi ( ar, فيصل الأول بن الحسين بن علي الهاشمي, ''Faysal el-Evvel bin al-Ḥusayn bin Alī el-Hâşimî''; 20 May 1885 – 8 September 1933) was King of the Arab Kingdom of Syria ...
established the
Kingdom of Syria
Kingdom commonly refers to:
* A monarchy ruled by a king or queen
* Kingdom (biology), a category in biological taxonomy
Kingdom may also refer to:
Arts and media Television
* Kingdom (British TV series), ''Kingdom'' (British TV series), a 200 ...
in Damascus as an independent Arab state. During this period, al-Qassam's Jableh militia fought against local French-backed
Alawite
The Alawis, Alawites ( ar, علوية ''Alawīyah''), or pejoratively Nusayris ( ar, نصيرية ''Nuṣayrīyah'') are an ethnoreligious group that lives primarily in Levant and follows Alawism, a sect of Islam that originated from Shia Isl ...
militiamen who occupied areas around the city. The Alawites were eventually repelled, but French forces moved in soon after to consolidate their control. Consequently, al-Qassam and many of his disciples left Jableh for
Mount Sahyun where he established a base near the village of
Zanqufeh to launch guerrilla raids against the French Army.
Al-Qassam's militia grew when it was joined by another militia based in the mountains following the death of its commander
Umar al-Bitar. However, as the French tightened their control of the area, they were able to successfully pressure several of Jableh's major landowners to drop their financial support for al-Qassam and pay taxes to the French Mandate government. This further isolated al-Qassam who decided to flee Mount Sahyun for
Aleppo
)), is an adjective which means "white-colored mixed with black".
, motto =
, image_map =
, mapsize =
, map_caption =
, image_map1 =
...
in May 1920. There he and his fighters joined ranks with
Ibrahim Hananu who was leading attacks against the French Army until the latter captured
Jisr ash-Shugur
Jisr ash-Shughūr ( ar, جِسْرُ ٱلشُّغُورِ, jisr aš-šuġūr, , also rendered as ''Jisser ash-Shughour'' and other spellings), known in antiquity as Seleucobelus ( el, Σελευκόβηλος, translit=Seleukóbēlos), is a city in ...
in July. As a result of this French victory and the impending capitulation of Aleppo, al-Qassam and members of his unit fled past French Army lines with forged passports to
Tartus
)
, settlement_type = City
, image_skyline =
, imagesize =
, image_caption = Tartus corniche Port of Tartus • Tartus beach and boulevard Cathedral of Our Lady of Tortosa • Al-Assad Stadium&n ...
.
[Schleifer, ed. Burke, 1993, p. 170.]
Activism in Palestine
Establishment in Haifa
From Tartus, al-Qassam travelled to Beirut by boat and then to
Haifa
Haifa ( he, חֵיפָה ' ; ar, حَيْفَا ') is the third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropol ...
,
then under the
British Mandate, where his wife and daughters later joined him.
[ During the early 1920s, al-Qassam taught at the Madrasa Islamiya, an Islamic educational institution with many schools in Haifa and its periphery. It was funded by the Jamiat Islamiya, a ''waqf'' (religious endowments) administered by prominent Muslims from the city.] Unlike other Muslim scholars, al-Qassam made himself easily accessible to the public and often arrived late to teach his classes because he was frequently stopped by passersby for advice. He resigned from his teaching career due to the school's insistence that he maintain consistent hours.[Schleifer, ed. Burke, 1993, p. 171.] As part of his Islamic revivalist teaching, he denounced and discouraged some local Palestinian traditions, including unorthodox funeral rituals, mothers' visitation to the al-Khidr shrine
A shrine ( la, scrinium "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred or holy sacred space, space dedicated to a specific deity, ancestor worship, ancestor, hero, martyr, saint, Daemon (mythology), daem ...
on nearby Mount Carmel
Mount Carmel ( he, הַר הַכַּרְמֶל, Har haKarmel; ar, جبل الكرمل, Jabal al-Karmil), also known in Arabic as Mount Mar Elias ( ar, link=no, جبل مار إلياس, Jabal Mār Ilyās, lit=Mount Saint Elias/Elijah), is a c ...
to give thanks for their children's well-being or achievements and tribal dances around religious sites, as superstitious innovations to Islam.
Al-Qassam concentrated his activities on the lower classes, setting up a night school for casual labourers and preaching to them as an imam,[ first in the Jerini Mosque,] and later in the Istiqlal Mosque. He would seek them out on the streets, in brothels and hashish dens.[ His greatest following came from the landless ex-tenant farmers drifting into Haifa from the ]Upper Galilee
The Upper Galilee ( he, הגליל העליון, ''HaGalil Ha'Elyon''; ar, الجليل الأعلى, ''Al Jaleel Al A'alaa'') is a geographical-political term in use since the end of the Second Temple period. It originally referred to a mountai ...
where purchases of agricultural land by the Jewish National Fund
Jewish National Fund ( he, קֶרֶן קַיֶּימֶת לְיִשְׂרָאֵל, ''Keren Kayemet LeYisrael'', previously , ''Ha Fund HaLeumi'') was founded in 1901 to buy and develop land in Ottoman Syria (later Mandatory Palestine, and subseq ...
and Hebrew labour policies excluding Arabs had dispossessed many of their traditional livelihoods. Al-Qassam grew increasingly popular with northern Palestine's poorer Muslims and was frequently sought out to preach at Mawlid
Mawlid, Mawlid an-Nabi ash-Sharif or Eid Milad un Nabi ( ar, المولد النبوي, translit=mawlid an-nabawī, lit=Birth of the Prophet, sometimes simply called in colloquial Arabic , , among other vernacular pronunciations; sometimes , ) ...
celebrations.[Schleifer, ed. Burke, 1993, p. 172.]
In 1929 he was appointed the marriage registrar at the sharia
Sharia (; ar, شريعة, sharīʿa ) is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the religious precepts of Islam and is based on the sacred scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran and the H ...
court in Haifa by the Waqf authorities in Jerusalem, a role that allowed him to tour the northern villages, whose inhabitants he encouraged to set up agricultural cooperatives. According to the American historian Edmund Burke
Edmund Burke (; 12 January NS.html"_;"title="New_Style.html"_;"title="/nowiki>New_Style">NS">New_Style.html"_;"title="/nowiki>New_Style">NS/nowiki>_1729_–_9_July_1797)_was_an_ NS.html"_;"title="New_Style.html"_;"title="/nowiki>New_Style"> ...
, al-Qassam was:An individual deeply imbued with the Islamic social gospel and who was struck by the plight of Palestinian peasants and migrants. Al-Qassam's pastoral concern was linked to his moral outrage as a Muslim at the ways in which the old implicit social compact was being violated in the circumstances of British mandatory Palestine. This anger fueled a political radicalism that drove him eventually to take up arms and marks him off from the Palestinian notable politicians.
He also took advantage of his travels to deliver fiery political and religious sermons in which he encouraged villagers to organise resistance units to attack the British and Jews.[ He intensified his agitation and obtained a ]fatwa
A fatwā ( ; ar, فتوى; plural ''fatāwā'' ) is a legal ruling on a point of Islamic law (''sharia'') given by a qualified '' Faqih'' (Islamic jurist) in response to a question posed by a private individual, judge or government. A jurist i ...
from Shaykh Badr al-Din al-Taji al-Hasani Badr (Arabic: بدر) as a given name below is an Arabic masculine and feminine name given to the "full moon on its fourteenth night" or the ecclesiastical full moon.
Badr may refer to: .and it is also one of the oldest and rarest names in the Arabi ...
, the Mufti
A Mufti (; ar, مفتي) is an Islamic jurist qualified to issue a nonbinding opinion ('' fatwa'') on a point of Islamic law (''sharia''). The act of issuing fatwas is called ''iftāʾ''. Muftis and their ''fatwas'' played an important rol ...
of Damascus
)), is an adjective which means "spacious".
, motto =
, image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg
, image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg
, seal_type = Seal
, map_caption =
, ...
, which ruled that the struggle against the British and the Jews was permissible.
Relationship with local leaders
According to Israeli historian Shai Lachman, between 1921 and 1935 al-Qassam often cooperated with Hajj Amin al-Husseini
Mohammed Amin al-Husseini ( ar, محمد أمين الحسيني 1897
– 4 July 1974) was a Palestinian Arab nationalist and Muslim leader in Mandatory Palestine.
Al-Husseini was the scion of the al-Husayni family of Jerusalemite Arab notable ...
, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem
The Grand Mufti of Jerusalem is the Sunni Muslim cleric in charge of Jerusalem's Islamic holy places, including the Al-Aqsa Mosque. The position was created by the British military government led by Ronald Storrs in 1918.See Islamic Leadership i ...
. They were initially on good terms, and al-Qassam's various official appointments required the mufti's prior consent. He suggests their cooperation increased after the 1929 riots, in which one source claims al-Qassam's men were active. The two fell out in the mid-1930s, perhaps due to al-Qassam's independent line of activism. In 1933, al-Qassam sent an emissary to al-Husseini, requesting the latter's participation in a revolt against the British. At the time, al-Husseini refused, preferring a political solution.
Between 1928 until his death, al-Qassam served as the president of the Young Men's Muslim Association The Young Men's Muslim Association ( ar, جمعية الشبان المسلمين) (''Jam'iyyat al-Shubban al-Muslimin'') was founded in Egypt in 1926. By the end of the decade it had around 15,000 members. The leader of the YMMA in Palestine was ...
(YMMA) in Haifa. While he focused his activism with the lower classes, his position in the YMMA afforded him access with the middle and educated classes of the city who were attracted to Hizb al-Istiqlal (Independence Party), an Arab nationalist political party.[Schleifer, ed. Burke, 1993, p. 175.] In particular, he developed a strong relationship with leading local party member Rashid al-Hajj Ibrahim, the previous president of the Haifa YMMA. A wide ideological gap between the secularist
Secularism is the principle of seeking to conduct human affairs based on secular, naturalistic considerations.
Secularism is most commonly defined as the separation of religion from civil affairs and the state, and may be broadened to a sim ...
al-Istiqlal and al-Qassam was bridged by a convergence in the view that the struggle against Zionist expansion in Palestine was inseparable from active opposition to British rule. This view separated al-Qassam and al-Istiqlal from the mainstream political forces in Palestine at the time. While men from al-Istiqlal and the YMMA generally refrained from joining al-Qassam's cause, his association with them helped protect him from political figures who opposed his activism. His activities were also financed by several well-off businessmen associated with al-Istiqlal due to his spreading reputation.[
]
Organisation of armed struggle
In 1930[ or 1931,][Judis, 2014, p. 108.] al-Qassam had recruited numerous hand-picked followers and organised them into about a dozen different circles, each group of supporters unaware of the existence of the other groups. The majority of his men were peasants and urban labourers. The majority of al-Qassam's circles were based in northern Palestine, but he had disciples throughout the country, including in Gaza in the south. In contrast to traditional Palestinian leaders who campaigned against Zionist
Zionism ( he, צִיּוֹנוּת ''Tsiyyonut'' after ''Zion'') is a nationalist movement that espouses the establishment of, and support for a homeland for the Jewish people centered in the area roughly corresponding to what is known in Je ...
settlement while avoiding confrontation with the British authorities, al-Qassam saw it as a priority to fight against both. He also saw the brewing conflict in Palestine as a religious struggle, unlike most Palestinian leaders who advocated a secular and nationalist
Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...
response. Al-Qassam advocated a moral, political and military ''jihad'' as the solution to end British rule and Zionist aspirations in Palestine.[Schleifer, ed. Burke, 1993 p. 173.]
In training his men, al-Qassam stressed that maintaining good character was of paramount importance. As such, fighters should provide for the needy, aid people with illness, maintain good ties with their families and pray regularly to God
In monotheism, monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator deity, creator, and principal object of Faith#Religious views, faith.Richard Swinburne, Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Ted Honderich, Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Ox ...
. These virtues, he claimed, were prerequisites to being disciplined and fearless fighters. The moral component of al-Qassam's teachings were especially geared towards the young men of Haifa's labour slums who lived away from their families and who were exposed to activities considered immoral in Islam. He viewed marriage as key to preventing the moral corruption of young men and managed to financially aid his more destitute supporters with their wedding expenses. He encouraged his men to grow beards as a sign of their commitment to ''jihad'' and to carry a Qur'an
The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , sing. ...
with them wherever they went.[Schleifer, ed. Burke, 1993, p. 174.] Although many of his followers had been illiterate, he taught them how to read and write using the Qur'an as their basis for learning. Al-Qassam also asked his fighters to engage in the spiritual exercises practiced by the Qadiriyya
The Qadiriyya (), also transliterated Qādirīyah, ''Qadri'', ''Qadriya'', ''Kadri'', ''Elkadri'', ''Elkadry'', ''Aladray'', ''Alkadrie'', ''Adray'', ''Kadray'', ''Kadiri'', ''Qadiri'', ''Quadri'' or ''Qadri'' are members of the Sunni Qadiri ta ...
Sufi order and to recite Sufi chants before battle.
The guerrilla bands became known as the Black Hand
Black Hand or The Black Hand may refer to:
Extortionists and underground groups
* Black Hand (anarchism) (''La Mano Negra''), a presumed secret, anarchist organization based in the Andalusian region of Spain during the early 1880s
* Black Hand (e ...
(''al-kaff al-aswad''), an anti-Zionist and anti-British militant organisation.[Kimmerling and Migdal, 2003, p. 65.] The idea for such a group appeared to have crystallised after the 1929 riots. From the outset, a split occurred in the movement. One faction led by Abu Ibrahim al-Kabir
Khalil Muhammad Issa, better known by his ''nom de guerre'' Abu Ibrahim al-Kabir, was a Palestinian people, Palestinian Arab commander during the 1936-39 Arab revolt in Palestine.
Life
Abu Ibrahim worked as a labourer in Haifa during the 1920s.Sw ...
argued for immediate attacks against British and Jewish targets, while the other faction, headed by al-Qassam, thought than an armed revolt was premature and risked exposing the group's preparations. According to Subhi Yasin, a comrade of al-Qassam, the group's attacks in the north were executed by Abu Ibrahim's group in defiance of al-Qassam, though in 1969, Abu Ibrahim denied this allegation. The Black Hand's ensuing campaign began with the ambush and killing of three members of Kibbutz
A kibbutz ( he, קִבּוּץ / , lit. "gathering, clustering"; plural: kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1909, was Degania. Today, farming h ...
Yagur
Yagur ( he, יָגוּר) is a kibbutz in northern Israel. Located on the northeastern slopes of Mount Carmel, about 9 km southeast of Haifa, it falls under the jurisdiction of Zevulun Regional Council. In it had a population of , making it ...
on 11 April 1931, a failed bomb attack on outlying Jewish homes in Haifa in early 1932, and several operations that killed or wounded four members of northern Jewish settlements. The campaign climaxed with the deaths of a Jewish father and son in Nahalal
Nahalal ( he, נַהֲלָל) is a moshav in northern Israel. Covering 8.5 square kilometers, it falls under the jurisdiction of the Jezreel Valley Regional Council. In it had a population of .
Nahalal is best known for its general layout, as d ...
, from a bomb thrown into their home, on 22 December 1932.
By 1935, al-Qassam had recruited several hundred men—the figures range from 200 to 800—organised in cells of five men, and arranged military training for peasants.[ The cells were equipped with bombs and firearms, which they used to raid Jewish settlements and sabotage British-built rail lines.][ Though striking a responsive chord among the rural poor and urban underclass, al-Qassam's movement deeply perturbed the Muslim urban elite as it threatened their political and patronage connections with the British Mandatory authorities. Following the October 1935 discovery of a clandestine cache of arms in the port of Jaffa apparently originating from Belgium and destined for the ]Haganah
Haganah ( he, הַהֲגָנָה, lit. ''The Defence'') was the main Zionist paramilitary organization of the Jewish population ("Yishuv") in Mandatory Palestine between 1920 and its disestablishment in 1948, when it became the core of the ...
, a Jewish paramilitary force, Palestinian Arab indignation broke out in two general strikes. The arms shipment to the Haganah served as the final impetus for al-Qassam to launch a revolt against the authorities.
Death
On 8 November the body of a Palestine Police constable, Moshe Rosenfeld, was discovered near Ein Harod
Ein Harod ( he, עֵין חֲרוֹד) was a kibbutz in northern Israel near Mount Gilboa. Founded in 1921, it became the center of Mandatory Palestine's kibbutz movement, hosting the headquarters of the largest kibbutz organisation, HaKibbutz H ...
.[Laurens, 2002, p. 298.] Al-Qassam and his followers were believed to have been responsible and search parties set out to capture him. In this context, al-Qassam and twelve of his men decided to go underground and, leaving Haifa, took to the hills between Jenin
Jenin (; ar, ') is a Palestinian city in the northern West Bank. It serves as the administrative center of the Jenin Governorate of the State of Palestine and is a major center for the surrounding towns. In 2007, Jenin had a population of app ...
and Nablus
Nablus ( ; ar, نابلس, Nābulus ; he, שכם, Šəḵem, ISO 259-3: ; Samaritan Hebrew: , romanized: ; el, Νεάπολις, Νeápolis) is a Palestinian city in the West Bank, located approximately north of Jerusalem, with a populati ...
. There they spent ten days on the move, during which they were fed by the residents of villages in the area. The British police manhunt eventually surrounded al-Qassam in a cave near Ya'bad
Ya'bad ( ar, يعبد) is a Palestinian town in the northern West Bank, 20 kilometers west of Jenin in the Jenin Governorate. It is a major agricultural town with most of its land covered with olive groves and grain fields. According to the Pales ...
, in the village of Sheikh Zeid.[Milton-Edwards, 1999, p. 19.] In the long ensuing firefight, al-Qassam and three of his followers were killed, and five captured on 20 November.[
The manner of his last stand galvanized Palestinians at the time, according to American historian ]Abdallah Schleifer
S. Abdallah S. Schleifer (born Marc Schleifer; 1935) is a prominent Middle East expert; a senior fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute (United States) and at the Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought (Jordan).
Career
A former ...
:
Surrounded, he told his men to die as martyrs, and opened fire. His defiance and manner of his death (which stunned the traditional leadership) electrified the Palestinian people. Thousands forced their way past police lines at the funeral in Haifa, and the secular Arab nationalist parties invoked his memory as the symbol of resistance. It was the largest political gathering ever to assemble in mandatory Palestine.
To the surprise of the Palestine Police Force
The Palestine Police Force was a British colonial police service established in Mandatory Palestine on 1 July 1920,Sinclair, 2006. when High Commissioner Sir Herbert Samuel's civil administration took over responsibility for security from Gene ...
, al-Qassam's funeral, which was held at the Jerini Mosque, attracted at least 3,000 mourners, mostly members of the peasant and working classes.[ His coffin and those of his slain comrades were draped in the flags of ]Yemen
Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, north and ...
, Saudi Arabia, and Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
, the only three independent Arab countries at the time. In reaction to al-Qassam's death, strikes were held in Haifa and several Palestinian and Syrian cities. Al-Qassam is buried at the Muslim cemetery at the former Palestinian village of Balad al-Sheikh, now Nesher
Nesher ( he, נֶשֶׁר) is a city in the Haifa District of Israel. In it had a population of . It was founded in 1923 as a workers town for the Nesher Cement factory, the first cement factory in the country.
History
Nesher was founded in ...
, a Jewish suburb of Haifa. An obituary for al-Qassam was published in the Egyptian newspaper ''Al-Ahram
''Al-Ahram'' ( ar, الأهرام; ''The Pyramids''), founded on 5 August 1875, is the most widely circulating Egyptian daily newspaper, and the second oldest after '' al-Waqa'i`al-Masriya'' (''The Egyptian Events'', founded 1828). It is majori ...
'' on 22 November, eulogizing him as a "martyr" with the following statement: "I heard you preaching from up in the pulpit, summoning to the sword ... Through your death you are more eloquent than ever you were in life."
Legacy
Five months after al-Qassam's death, members of his movement, known as "Qassamiyun" or "Qassamites", also ''Ikhwan al-Qassam'',
(the Brothers of al-Qassam) under the leadership of Farhan al-Sa'di, al-Qassam's spiritual heir, shot and killed two Jewish passengers on a bus and shot three Jewish drivers, killing two, in the 1936 Anabta shooting
The 1936 Tulkarm shooting of two Jews on the road between Anabta and Tulkarm took place in British Mandatory Palestine. Jews retaliated the next day against Arabs in Tel Aviv and killed two in Petah Tikvah.
Incident
On the evening of 15 Apr ...
, acts that became major contributing factors in the start of the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine
The 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine, later known as The Great Revolt (''al-Thawra al- Kubra'') or The Great Palestinian Revolt (''Thawrat Filastin al-Kubra''), was a popular nationalist uprising by Palestinian Arabs in Mandatory Palestine a ...
. Peasant and urban guerrilla factions (''fasa'il'') led by the Qassamiyun played a significant role in commencing the countrywide revolt. At the start of the revolt, al-Qassam's close disciples al-Sa'di, Abu Ibrahim al-Kabir
Khalil Muhammad Issa, better known by his ''nom de guerre'' Abu Ibrahim al-Kabir, was a Palestinian people, Palestinian Arab commander during the 1936-39 Arab revolt in Palestine.
Life
Abu Ibrahim worked as a labourer in Haifa during the 1920s.Sw ...
, and Attiyah Ahmad Awad led ''fasa'il'' in the Jenin
Jenin (; ar, ') is a Palestinian city in the northern West Bank. It serves as the administrative center of the Jenin Governorate of the State of Palestine and is a major center for the surrounding towns. In 2007, Jenin had a population of app ...
region, the Upper Galilee and Balad al-Sheikh, respectively.
Al-Qassam, according to Palestinian-American Rashid Khalidi
Rashid Ismail Khalidi (; born 1948) is an American historian of the Middle East and the Edward Said Professor of Modern Arab Studies at Columbia University. He served as editor of the '' Journal of Palestine Studies'' from 2002 until 2020, whe ...
,
played a crucial role in winning the populace away from the elite-brokered politics of compromise with the British, and in showing them the "correct" path of popular armed struggle against the British and the Zionists.
The first Israeli prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, compared the glory that al-Qassam's actions aroused in the 1930s to the fame won in Zionist discourse by Zionist activist Joseph Trumpeldor
Joseph Vladimirovich (Volfovich) Trumpeldor (21 November 1880 – 1 March 1920, he, יוֹסֵף טְרוּמְפֶּלְדוֹר , russian: Иосиф Владимирович (Вольфович) Трумпельдор ) was an early Zionist a ...
who died in a battle with Arab forces. Recalling this, Israeli historian Tom Segev
Tom Segev ( he, תום שגב; born March 1, 1945) is an Israeli historian, author and journalist. He is associated with Israel's New Historians, a group challenging many of the country's traditional narratives.
Biography
Segev was born in Jerus ...
has argued that "The terrorists that al-Qassam led and the :wikt:intifada, intifada fighters, more recently, may also be likened to the terrorists that Menachem Begin led."
Although al-Qassam's revolt was unsuccessful in his lifetime, militant organizations gained inspiration from his example. His funeral drew thousands, which turned into a mass demonstration of national unity. The Palestinian fedayeen who emerged in the 1960s saw al-Qassam as their originator. The founders of the Palestinian nationalism, Palestinian nationalist armed movement Fatah had initially considered naming their group the "Qassamiyun". Leila Khaled, a well-known member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, once stated that her organization began "where al-Qassam left off: his generation started the revolution, my generation intends to finish it."[Swedenberg, p. 105.]
The military wing of the Palestinian Islamism, Islamist armed movement Hamas, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, bears his name as does the Qassam rocket, a short-range rocket the group produces and uses.
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Qassam, Izz Din
1882 births
1935 deaths
20th-century imams
Al-Azhar University alumni
Syrian emigrants to Mandatory Palestine
Guerrillas killed in action
Arabs from the Ottoman Empire
Palestinian militants
People from Beirut vilayet
People from Haifa
People from Jableh
Syrian imams
Syrian Sufis
World War I chaplains
People of the Franco-Syrian War
Syrian Sunni Muslims
Resistance to the British Empire
Resistance to the French colonial empire