Egyptian Islamic Jihad
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What is the Egyptian Islamic Jihad?
The Egyptian Islamic Jihad (EIJ) is an Egyptian extremist organization that emerged in the late 1970s, becoming a prominent force in the 1980s and 1990s. It was formed from smaller militant groups, with Muhammad Abd al-Salam Faraj as its leader. Faraj's treatise, Al-Farīdah al-ghāʾibah, advocating violence to create an Islamic state, became the group’s ideological foundation.
EIJ is known for the assassination of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat in 1981. In the 1980s, many EIJ members participated in the Afghan guerrilla war against the Soviet occupation. EIJ leaders, including Ayman al-Zawahiri, allied with Osama bin Laden, eventually merging with al-Qaeda in 2001.
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When and why was the Egyptian Islamic Jihad formed?
The Egyptian Islamic Jihad (EIJ) is an extremist organization that emerged in Egypt in the late 1970s. It grew into a powerful force during the 1980s and 1990s. The EIJ coalesced from smaller militant groups under the leadership of Muhammad Abd al-Salam Faraj. His treatise, The Neglected Duty, which advocated violence to create an Islamic state, became the group’s ideological foundation.
The EIJ's primary goal was to overthrow Egypt’s secular state. They sought to replace it with an Islamic government. Disapproval of government policies and influence from Sayyid Quṭb's ideology also contributed to the group's formation. In 1981, EIJ members assassinated Egyptian President Anwar Sadat. In 1998, the EIJ allied with al-Qaeda, and the two groups merged in 2001.
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What are the main goals of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad?
The Egyptian Islamic Jihad (EIJ) was an Egyptian extremist organization that emerged in the late 1970s. The group's main goal was to create an Islamic state in Egypt by overthrowing the government, using violence if necessary.
Key objectives and activities:
* Establish an Islamic state EIJ aimed to create a state based on Islamic principles, advocating violence to achieve this goal.
* Assassination of Anwar Sadat EIJ members assassinated Egyptian President Anwar Sadat in 1981.
* Alliance with al-Qaeda In 1998, EIJ allied with al-Qaeda, merging fully in 2001. EIJ relied on al-Qaeda for planning and executing attacks against the Egyptian government.
* Attacks on Egyptian targets EIJ launched attacks on Egyptian officials and the Egyptian embassy in Pakistan.4 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
How has the Egyptian Islamic Jihad operated within Egypt?
The Egyptian Islamic Jihad (EIJ) was an Egyptian extremist organization that emerged in the late 1970s. It advocated the violent creation of an Islamic state, as outlined in Muhammad Abd al-Salam Faraj's "The Neglected Duty." In 1981, the EIJ assassinated Egyptian President Anwar Sadat.
Following the assassination, a crackdown led to the imprisonment of most of the organization's leaders, causing fractures within the EIJ. In the 1990s, EIJ launched armed operations against the Egyptian government, including assassination attempts on the interior minister in August 1993 and the prime minister in November 1993. These actions resulted in a severe crackdown, which forced the group to seek targets outside of Egypt.
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What is the connection between the Egyptian Islamic Jihad and other extremist groups, like al-Qaeda?
The Egyptian Islamic Jihad (EIJ) and al-Qaeda formed a close connection, leading to a merger in 2001. In the 1980s, EIJ leaders like Ayman al-Zawahiri met Osama bin Laden in Pakistan and deepened ties in Sudan. EIJ veterans then became al-Qaeda leaders, relying on al-Qaeda for operations against the Egyptian government.
Al-Qaeda's transnational jihad attracted groups like EIJ, inspiring terror cells globally. These groups, such as al-Qaeda in Iraq, operated under the al-Qaeda brand with minimal organizational connection.
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How has the Egyptian government responded to the actions of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad?
The Egyptian government has taken strong measures in response to the actions of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad (EIJ). Following the EIJ's assassination of President Anwar Sadat in 1981, a crackdown led to the imprisonment of most of the organization's leaders. In the 1990s, after EIJ claimed responsibility for multiple failed assassination attempts and bombings, the Egyptian government launched a severe repression campaign against the group within Egypt, which forced the group to find targets abroad. In mid-2007, the government released over 130 jailed members of EIJ in exchange for their renouncing violence as part of a "deradicalization" program.
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Egyptian Islamic Jihad (EIJ), Egyptian extremist organization that originated in the late 1970s and developed into a powerful force in the 1980s and 1990s. Egyptian Islamic Jihad (EIJ) allied with the al-Qaeda network in the late 1990s, and the two groups merged in 2001.
EIJ coalesced out of a variety of smaller militant groups in the late 1970s under the leadership of Muhammad Abd al-Salam Faraj. His treatise Al-Farīḍah al-ghāʾibah (1981; The Neglected Duty), which urged Muslims to use violence for the purpose of creating an Islamic state, became the group’s ideological platform. On October 6, 1981, EIJ members disguised as soldiers assassinated Egyptian Pres. Anwar Sadat, shooting him in front of Egyptian television cameras during a military parade. A crackdown followed that saw most of the organization’s leaders imprisoned. During that period, fractures within EIJ worsened, and the group’s Upper Egyptian wing broke away to form an independent organization, al-Jamāʿah al-Islāmiyyah (“the Islamic Group”), under the leadership of Omar Abdel Rahman.
In the 1980s many members of EIJ left Egypt to participate in the Afghan guerrilla war against the occupation that followed the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. It was in Peshawar, Pakistan, that EIJ’s leaders Sayyid Imam al-Sharif and Ayman al-Zawahiri became acquainted with the Saudi financier and organizer Osama bin Laden, who founded the al-Qaeda network in the late 1980s.
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Soon after the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan in 1989, Sharif, Zawahiri, and other EIJ leaders joined bin Laden in Khartoum, where he was hosted by Sudan’s government. Ties between EIJ and al-Qaeda continued to deepen. Veterans of EIJ came to constitute a large portion of al-Qaeda’s senior leadership, while EIJ relied on al-Qaeda for the planning and execution of its armed operations against the Egyptian government. EIJ claimed responsibility for foiled assassination attempts on Interior Minister Hassan al-Alfi in August 1993 and Prime Minister Atef Sedky in November 1993. Those attacks, along with EIJ’s failed attempt to assassinate Egyptian Pres. Hosni Mubarak during a visit to Ethiopia in June 1995, provoked a crushing repression of the group inside Egypt, forcing the group to find targets abroad. EIJ’s deadliest attack was its bombing of Egypt’s embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan, in November 1995, which killed 17 people. However, EIJ was largely overshadowed by al-Jamāʿah al-Islāmiyyah, which waged a far-bloodier campaign inside Egypt, killing numerous officials, civilians, and foreign tourists.
EIJ and al-Qaeda announced a formal alliance in 1998, and the two groups merged fully in 2001. Zawahiri became Osama bin Laden’s deputy and was affiliated with the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001.
In mid-2007, as part of a “deradicalization” program, Egypt released more than 130 jailed members of EIJ in exchange for their renouncing violence. That year also saw a series of publications by Sayyid Imam al-Sharif renouncing terrorism as un-Islamic. Sharif’s writings drew a lengthy rebuttal from Zawahiri.