Islamist movements
p. 40-41
Texte intégral
1928 | 1948 | 1966 | 1977 | 14 August 2013 |
Creation of the Muslim Brotherhood | Assassination of Prime Minister El-Nokrashi | Sayyid Qutb hanged | Foundation of Da’wa Salafiyya | Crushing of Rabaa Square protest |
Egypt, historic home of the Muslim Brotherhood
“The Prophet is our guide, the Quran is our constitution, Jihad is our way and martyrdom our greatest hope.” (motto of the Muslim Brotherhood)
1The Muslim Brotherhood (jamaat al-ikhwan al-muslimin), one of the most influential Islamist organisations of the 20th century, has profoundly marked the contemporary history of Egypt. The movement was founded in Ismailia in 1928 by Hassan al-Banna as a rejection of Western political and cultural influence and an affirmation of the Islamic identity of Egyptian society.
2The Brotherhood champions a global project that aims to reform society through Islam. While the Muslim Brotherhood aspires to the establishment of an Islamic state, this should be the end point of a gradual change in society. Thus, the Brotherhood has engaged as much within the social and charitable spheres as the political.
3Over a few years branches of the Brotherhood were implanted throughout Egypt. In the 1940s, they conducted violent operations against the government and British troops. Banned in 1948, the Brotherhood threw its support behind the Free Officers during the revolution of July 1952. Some officers were members while others, such as Anwar Sadat, were sympathisers. Gamal Abdel Nasser, however, came into conflict with the Brotherhood and, when one of its members attempted to assassinate him in 1954, he implemented a very harsh crackdown.
4The period of imprisonment and clandestine activity that followed (1954-1971) saw formal rejection of the armed struggle under the influence of al-Banna’s successor, Hassan Ismail al-Houdaibi. At the same time, the radical writings of Sayyid Qutb, a Brotherhood intellectual and ideologist, profoundly influenced the movement. As author of In the Shade of the Quran and Milestones, he developed several concepts that would inspire the jihadist tendency, notably that of tafkir (excommunication).
From prohibition to power
5In 1971, with the ascension of Anwar Sadat to the presidency, the Muslim Brotherhood made a gradual return to public life. Its presence remained discreet within society, and while it was never officially authorised, it enjoyed a measure of tolerance that varied over time and was interspersed with phases of repression.
6Under Mubarak, it slipped into the party political scene, presented “independent” candidates, and developed a political programme. In 2005 Brotherhood candidates won 88 seats in the People’s Assembly.
7After the revolution of 25 January 2011, the Muslim Brotherhood was the best prepared opposition force to face the elections that followed the removal of Mubarak by the army. In less than a year and a half, it had won the legislative (November 2011 - January 2012) and the presidential elections (June 2012).
8The victory of Mohamed Morsi, the first democratically elected president of Egypt, ran headlong into the hostility of a spread of political actors and State structures. The Brotherhood’s authoritarian style of governance as well as its inability to develop an inclusive concept of government alienated it from the entire political spectrum and a large part of the population.
9The overthrow of Mohamed Morsi by the army in the wake of the demonstrations of 30 June 2013 marked the beginning of a new wave of repression. Brotherhood members and supporters were arrested and jailed, and a new period of exile, clandestine activity and captivity commenced. In the end, the Brotherhood came out of its experience of power weakened and discredited, while its ranks were shaken by internal divisions.
Salafism: between quietism and jihadism
10Salafism is a contemporary current within Islam that claims to practice a pure Islam harking back to its origins, but contains within it several tendencies, both quietist and jihadist. While its influence in Egypt is less than that of the Muslim Brotherhood, it has grown continuously since 2000.
11The emergence of Salafism in Egypt dates back to the 1920s, however, it did not really take off until the foundation of the da’wa salafiyya, the Salafist Call, in Alexandria in 1977. Until the revolution of 25 January 2011, the quietist tendency embodied by the da’wa salafiyya advocated obedience to the government while abstaining from participation in an ungodly political system.
12With the fall of Mubarak and the opening of the political arena, the Salafists were able to express their demands in the political sphere. By winning 25% of the seats during the legislative elections of 2011-2012, the coalition led by the Al-Nour Party – created in 2011 by the da’wa salafiyya – highlighted the prevalence of Salafism in Egypt. After the overthrow of Mohamed Morsi, the Al-Nour Party supported General Sisi’s ascension to power. This can be seen as a survival strategy and a consequence of their antagonistic relationship with the Muslim Brotherhood. Nonetheless, its place in the new political order is marginal.
13Outside the da’wa salafiyya, which represents the majority tendency, other groups identify with Salafism, such as al-jamaa al-islamiyya, the Cairo School, and independent preachers like Hazem Abu Ismail. Moreover, several parties were created after the revolution, illustrating the diversity of Salafism in Egypt.
14As regards jihadist Salafism, Egyptian groups founded in the 1970s – al-takfir wal-hijra and al-jihad – were forerunners: members of al-jihad assassinated Anwar Sadat in October 1981. Largely eradicated by the end of the 1990s, the jihadist phenomenon reappeared under cover of the 25 January 2011 uprising and is mostly present in the Sinai, where a genuine united insurrection has occurred that preached allegiance to the so-called Islamic State in November 2014.
Auteur
Baudouin Long, political scientist, associate researcher at the CEDEJ
Le texte seul est utilisable sous licence Licence OpenEdition Books. Les autres éléments (illustrations, fichiers annexes importés) sont « Tous droits réservés », sauf mention contraire.
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