In Search of “Lions and Hawks”
Abū Muḥammad al-Maqdisī’s Palestinian Identity
In: Die Welt des IslamsAbū Muḥammad al-Maqdisī (b. Barqā, West Bank, 1959), is one of the most influential radical Islamic ideologues alive. Considering his Palestinian origins, occasional references to Palestinian issues throughout his writings and the more recent focus in his work on radical groups in the Gaza Strip, some scholars and commentators assume that his Palestinian identity is an important factor in his ideology. I argue instead that while there is indeed some evidence pointing to a soft spot for Palestinian issues in al-Maqdisī’s work, he lacks a strong Palestinian identity and clearly favours the umma (the world-wide Muslim community) over Palestine in his writings. His more recent focus on events in the Gaza Strip as well as his earlier references to the Palestinian question should be seen in the broader context of his efforts to focus on areas where both daʿwa (calling people to Islam) and jihad can be legitimate, effective and fruitful.
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James Brandon, “Jordan’s Jihadi Scholar al-Maqdisi is Freed from Prison”, Terrorism Monitor, vol. 6, no. 7, 2008, pp. 3-6; Lahoud, Jihadis’, pp. 239-245; id., “In Search of Philosopher-Jihadis: Abu Muhammad al-Maqdisi’s Jihadi Philosophy”, Totalitarian Movements and Political Religions, vol. 10, no. 2, 2009, pp. 205-220; Murad Batal al-Shishani, “Jihad Ideologue Abu Muhammad al-Maqdisi Challenges Jordan’s Neo-Zarqawists”, Terrorism Monitor, vol. 7, no. 20, 2009, pp. 3f.; Joas Wagemakers, “Abu Muhammad al-Maqdisi: A Counter-Terrorism Asset?”, CTC Sentinel, vol. 1, no. 6, 2005, pp. 7ff.; id., “Invoking Zarqawi: Abu Muhammad al-Maqdisi’s Jihad Deficit”, CTC Sentinel, vol. 2, no. 6, 2009, pp. 14-17; id., “Protecting Jihad: The Sharia Council of the Minbar al-Tawhid wa-l-Jihad”, vol. 18, no. 2, 2011, pp. 148-162; id., “Reclaiming Scholarly Authority: Abu Muhammad al-Maqdisi’s Critique of Jihadi Practices”, Studies in Conflict and Terrorism, vol. 34, no. 7, 2011, pp. 523-539.
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Muḥammad Abū Rummān, “Al-Maqdisī wa-stiḥqāq al-Taṣḥīḥ (2)”, Al-ʿAṣr (10 July 2005), www.alasr.ws/articles/view/6831 (accessed 9 February 2012); Abū Rummān & Abū Haniyya, “Al-Salafiyya”, p. 19; Brachman, Global, p. 69; Ḥusayn, Al-Zarqawi, p. 88; Liqāʾ, p. 4; Ṣināʿat al-Mawt: Muwājaha Fikriyya bayna l-Maqdisī wa-Anṣār al-Zarqāwī (1 March 2009), www.alarabiya.net/save_print.php?print=1&cont_id=67515 (accessed 4 March 2009); Mary Anne Weaver, “Inventing al-Zarqawi”, Atlantic Monthly (July/August 2006), p. 93; interview with Abū Muḥammad al-Maqdisī, Amman, January 2009.
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Napoleoni, Insurgent, p. 63; Liqāʾ, pp. 4, 11; Jamāl Khāshuqjī & Yāsir Abū Hilāla, “Al-Munaẓẓir al-Fikrī li-Munaffadhī nfijār al-Riyāḍ: Al-ʿUnf Farīḍa; al-Dīmūqrāṭiyya Shirk!”, Al-Wasaṭ, no. 235, 29 July–4 August 1996, pp. 12f.
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Shaḥāda, Al-Ḥarakāt, p. 26. The author does not explicitly link al-Maqdisī’s remark to a special concern for the Palestinian question, but his quoting of al-Maqdisī’s words in the context of an article that focuses on the role this issue plays among radical Islamists suggests that this may well be what he means.
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Tawfic E. Farah, “Political Socialization of Palestinian Children in Kuwait”, Journal of Palestine Studies, vol. 6, no. 4, July 1977, pp. 90-102; Mouin Rabbani, “The Making of a Palestinian Islamist Leader: An Interview with Khalid Mishʿal: Part I”, Journal of Palestine Studies, vol. 37, no. 3, 2008, pp. 62f.
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Wagemakers, “Protecting”, p. 150; id., Quietist, pp. 89ff.; id., “Reclaiming”, pp. 525f.
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In Search of “Lions and Hawks”
Abū Muḥammad al-Maqdisī’s Palestinian Identity
In: Die Welt des IslamsAbū Muḥammad al-Maqdisī (b. Barqā, West Bank, 1959), is one of the most influential radical Islamic ideologues alive. Considering his Palestinian origins, occasional references to Palestinian issues throughout his writings and the more recent focus in his work on radical groups in the Gaza Strip, some scholars and commentators assume that his Palestinian identity is an important factor in his ideology. I argue instead that while there is indeed some evidence pointing to a soft spot for Palestinian issues in al-Maqdisī’s work, he lacks a strong Palestinian identity and clearly favours the umma (the world-wide Muslim community) over Palestine in his writings. His more recent focus on events in the Gaza Strip as well as his earlier references to the Palestinian question should be seen in the broader context of his efforts to focus on areas where both daʿwa (calling people to Islam) and jihad can be legitimate, effective and fruitful.
| All Time | Past Year | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 221 | 28 | 2 |
| Full Text Views | 19 | 3 | 0 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 28 | 8 | 0 |