Islamic Fundamentalism in the West Bank and Gaza: Muslim Brotherhood and Islamic Jihad

191 Pages·1994·3.73 MB·English

by  Ziad Abu-Amr

Islamic
Fundamentalism
in the West Bank
and Gaza
Ziad Abu-Amr
Islamic
Fundamentalism
in the West Bank
and Gaza
Indiana Series in Arab and Islamic Studies
Salih J. Altoma, Iliya Harik, and Mark Tessler, general editors
Islamic
Fundamentalism
in the West Bank
and Gaza
Muslim Brotherhood
and Islamic Jihad
Ziad Abu-Amr
Indiana University Press
Bloomington and Indianapolis
© 1994 by Ziad Abu-Amr
All rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by
any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and
recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without
permission in writing from the publisher. The Association of American
University Presses’ Resolution on Permissions constitutes the only
exception to this prohibition.
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of
American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of
Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI Z39.48-1984.
Manufactured in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Abu ‘Amr, Ziyad.
[Harakah al-IslamTyah fT al-Diffah al-Gharblyah wa-Qita‘ Ghazzah.
English]
Islamic fundamentalism in the West Bank and Gaza : Muslim
Brotherhood and Islamic Jihad / Ziad Abu-Amr.
p. cm — (Indiana series in Arab and Islamic studies)
Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index.
ISBN 0-253-30121-1 (alk. paper). — ISBN 0-253-20866-1 (pbk. :
alk. paper)
1. Islam and politics—West Bank. 2. Islam and politics—Gaza
Strip. 3. West Bank—Politics and government. 4. Gaza Strip—
Politics and government. I. Title. II. Series.
BP63.P32W47413 1994
322.4'2'0956953—dc20 93-28504
1 2 3 4 5 00 99 98 97 96 95 94
For
Bashir, Nadia, and Hind
Contents
Preface / ix
Acknowledgments / xi
Introduction / xiii
1 ___________________________________________________________
The Emergence and Evolution of the Muslim
Brotherhood Society 1
2
_________________________________________________________
The Muslim Brotherhood and the Palestine Question 23
3 ______________________________________________________
The Intifada 53
4 _______________________________________________
The Islamic Jihad 90
Conclusion 128
Notes / 137
References / 155
Index / 163

PREFACE
I With the emergence of Islamic fundamentalist groups
in the Occupied Territories, the authority of the secular nationalist
movement led by the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) has
been challenged for the first time in many years. While Israel and
the Israeli occupation have been the apparent target, and the rallying
point for both trends, an underlying struggle between the two
focuses on defining the orientation of the Palestinian society and its
leadership.
This book studies the two major groups of the Islamic movement
in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, the Muslim Brotherhood
Society and the Islamic Jihad movement. The book deals with the
origins of these two groups, their development, the basic points of
departure for each, and the relationship between them. It also deals
with the position of each group toward the Palestinian question,
the relationship with the PLO, and the role of each group in the
Palestinian intifada [popular uprising] of December 1987. The book
tries to assess the current influence of the Muslim fundamentalists
vis-a-vis that of the PLO, as well as the future prospects for fun­
damentalists and nationalists.
While the study of the Islamic movement in the West Bank and
Gaza is significant in its own right, a number of internal and regional
developments and factors make the study of this movement even
more pressing. These include: (1) the eruption of the Palestinian
intifada of 1987 and the subsequent rise of the Islamic movement
in the Occupied Territories; (2) the rise of the Islamic movements
in other Arab countries such as Jordan, Algeria, Tunisia, and Sudan;
(3) the presence in both Egypt and Syria, the two major Arab
countries surrounding Israel, of powerful Islamic movements
(though the movement in Syria is currently suppressed or dormant);
(4) the potential radicalization or rise to power of one or more of
these movements in their respective countries and the consequences
Preface
X
of such an eventuality; (5) the presence of an Islamic government
in Iran and the regional ramifications of such a government being
in place; and (6) the future configuration of the Middle East region
in the context of an Islamic revival and the relationship of this region
to the West.
In preparing this study, I have relied on a variety of sources and
references. These included pamphlets, statements, and documents
issued by the Islamic groups and the factions of the PLO, personal
interviews, and secondary Arab and foreign sources that deal with
the subject of the Islamic groups in Palestine. The Muslim Brother­
hood Society in the Occupied Territories relies for advice and guid­
ance on the societies in both Egypt and Jordan. Therefore, I have
drawn on sources relevant to the Muslim Brotherhood Society in
both countries. I have also relied on materials and literature pub­
lished outside the Occupied Territories reflecting the views of the
Islamic Jihad movement in Palestine. Access to sources and data has
not been easy because the Islamic groups in the West Bank and the
Gaza Strip tend to cloak themselves and their activities in secrecy.
Within the context of this study, certain expressions are used to
signify specific meanings. The term “fundamentalism” describes the
Islamists’ attempts to go back to the fundamentals of Islam in all
spheres of life. In this sense they are identified as fundamentalists.
The terms “nationalist”, “nationalist trend”, and “nationalist move­
ment” refer to the PLO factions and their followers or supporters.
The expression “Islamic movement” refers to the two Islamic groups
under discussion, despite the fact that the Muslim Brotherhood
Society, alternately referred to as Hamas, comprises the bulk of the
Islamic movement in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
Finally, I would like to thank those who have read this manuscript
for their many important observations. I wish to emphasize that the
responsibility for this study and for any errors or deficiencies rests
solely on the shoulders of the author.