Nusret Imamović (26 September 1971) is a Bosnian Islamist leader who founded the

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 ...

community in Gornja Maoča.

Biography

Imamović was born in Lipovice near

Kalesija Kalesija ( sr-cyrl, Калесија) is a town and municipality located in Tuzla Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is located in northeastern Bosnia and Herzegovina, east of Tuzla. As of ...

. He studied at the

Gazi Husrev-begova Medresa ''JU Gazi Husrev-begova medresa, Sarajevo'' (''Javna ustanova Gazi Husrev-begova medresa u Sarajevu''; ) is a high school and college, a madrasa in Arabic, founded on 8 January 1537 CE (26. rajab 943 AH) and built in Sarajevo as Gazi Husrev-beg's ...

. During the

Bosnian War The Bosnian War ( sh, Rat u Bosni i Hercegovini / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. The war is commonly seen as having started ...

from 1992 to 1995, Imaović was a member of the

Bosnian mujahideen Bosnian mujahideen ( bs, Bosanski mudžahedini), also called ''El Mudžahid'' (from ar, مجاهد, ''mujāhid''), were foreign Muslim volunteers who fought on the Bosniak (Bosnian Muslim) side during the 1992–95 Bosnian War. They first arriv ...

who fought for the

Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina The Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( bs, Armija Republike Bosne i Hercegovine or ARBiH), often referred to as Bosnian Army, was the military force of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It was established by the government of ...

. After the end of the war, Imamović went to the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

, where he earned a degree in

Sharia law Sharia (; ar, شريعة, sharīʿa ) is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the Five Pillars of Islam, religious precepts of Islam and is based on the Islamic holy books, sacred scriptures o ...

. After his studies, he returned to Bosnia and Herzegovina. There, he became one of the two principal leaders of the Bosnian Salafist group along with

Jusuf Barčić Jusuf Barčić (25 September 1967 – 30 March 2007) was a Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnian Salafism, Salafist leader and a founder of the neo-Salafist movement in Bosnia and Herzegovina whose leadership shaped the Bosnian Salafist community. ...

. For some time he lived in

Zavidovići Zavidovići ( sr-cyrl, Завидовићи) is a town and municipality located in Zenica-Doboj Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated in central Bosnia and Herzegovina, located be ...

and in 2006 moved to Gornja Maoča where he established a

community. After Barčić's death in a car crash in 2007, Imamović became his successor. He was briefly arrested in 2010 and released. Imamović publicly supported multiple times violence and the global jihad movement. In 2013, he went to

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 fight in the

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

against the Syrian government as a member of the

Al-Nusra Front Al-Nusra Front or Jabhat al-Nusra ( ar, جبهة النصرة لأهل الشام, Jabhat an-Nuṣrah li-Ahl ish-Sham lit. ''Front of the Supporters of the People of Syria/the Levant''), known as Jabhat Fatah al-Sham ( ar, جبهة فتح ال ...

. The last reports state that he lives in the northern area of the

Idlib Governorate Idlib Governorate ( ar, مُحافظة ادلب / ALA-LC: ''Muḥāfaẓat Idlib'') is one of the 14 governorates of Syria. It is situated in northwestern Syria, bordering Turkey's Hatay province to the north, Aleppo Governorate to the east, Hama ...

in Syria. According to an unnamed Salafi source, Imamović relocated to Syria because he "couldn’t bear the constant pressure and accusations that he was a

terrorist Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...

" back home in Bosnia. The Syrian civil war divided the Salafist community in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with one side led by Imammović supporting the Al-Nusra Front, while the other, led by

Bilal Bosnić Husein Bilal Bosnić (born 1972) is a Bosnian Salafi. He is known for recruiting jihadists from Europe. He was born Husein Bosnić in Bužim, northwest Bosnia in 1972, he adopted Bilal as his nickname. As a youngster he moved with his parents ...

supported the

Islamic State An Islamic state is a State (polity), state that has a form of government based on sharia, Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical Polity, polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a t ...

. In 2014, the

United States Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other n ...

listed Imamović on their list of most-wanted terrorists. Imamović was included in new 15 January 2020 EU consolidated list of persons eligible for financial sanctions based on suspicion of terrorist activities.

Footnotes

References

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Imamovic Nusret 1971 births Living people People from Kalesija Bosnian mujahideen Bosnia and Herzegovina prisoners and detainees Islamic terrorism in Syria Bosnia and Herzegovina Salafis Bosnia and Herzegovina Islamists Al-Nusra Front members Fugitives wanted by the United States Fugitives wanted on terrorism charges Individuals designated as terrorists by the United States government