Gamzat-bek, The Second Imam of the Caucasian Imamate

 

Gamzat-bek

Gamzat-bek, also known as Hamza-Bek, Hamza Bek ibn Ali Iskandar Bek al-Hutsali (b. 1789 — d, October 1, 1834) was the second imam of the Caucasian Imamate.   Gamzat-bek succeeded Ghazi Muhammad upon Ghazi Muhammad's death in 1832.

Gamzat-bek was a son of one of the Avar beks. He was educated under the supervision of Muslim preachers and became an avid follower of a Sufi order. In August 1834, Gamzat-bek launched an assault on the Avar khans, who had been supporting the Russian Empire government and who had been hostile towards the Sufism movement. He succeeded in capturing the Avar capital of Khunzakh and executed its female ruler Pakhubike and her sons.  However, the supporters of the Avar khans, including Hadji Murad, conspired against Gamzat-bek and killed him (Leo Tolstoy's story Hadji Murat is based on this event). After the death of Gamzat-bek, Shamil became the third Imam of Dagestan -- the third Imam of the Caucasian Imamate.

The Dagestan struggle against the Russians began when the Russians formally acquired control of Dagestan from Persia (Iran) in 1813. After Ghazi Muḥammad was killed by the Russians (in 1832) and his successor, Gamzat Bek, was assassinated by his own followers (in 1834), Shamil was elected to serve as the third Imam (political-religious leader) of Dagestan -- the third Imam of Caucasian Imamate. 

Ayman al-Zawahiri, Leader of al-Qaeda After Bin Laden

 Zawahiri, Ayman al-

Ayman al-Zawahiri, also spelled Ayman al-Ẓawāhirī, also called ʿAbd al-Muʿizz, (b. June 19, 1951, Giza, Kingdom of Egypt — d. July 31, 2022, Kabul, Afghanistan), was an Egyptian physician and militant who became one of the major ideologues of al-Qaeda.  Zawahiri led al-Qaeda from 2011 until his death in 2022.

Zawahiri was raised in Maʿādī, Egypt, several miles south of Cairo. Although his parents were from prominent families, Zawahiri and his siblings were raised in a relatively humble environment. Zawahiri was a pious youth. As a student, he was greatly influenced by the work of Sayyid Qutb,  an Egyptian writer who was one of the foremost figures in modern Sunni Islamic revivalism. By the age of 15, Zawahiri had established a group dedicated to the overthrow of the Egyptian government in favor of Islamic rule.

Zawahiri then studied at Cairo University’s medical school, where he specialized in surgery. There he also continued his clandestine cactivities. He graduated in 1974 and then served for three years as an army surgeon. In 1980–81 he traveled as a relief worker with the Red Crescent to Peshawar, Pakistan, where he treated refugees affected by the Afghan War. During that time he made several cross-border trips into Afghanistan, where he witnessed the warfare firsthand.

After returning to Egypt, Zawahiri was one of several hundred militants arrested in the wake of the assassination of Egyptian President  Anwar Sadat in October 1981. Zawahiri was convicted of illegal arms possession and imprisoned for three years. During that time he was subjected to torture by intelligence officers interested in information about his contacts, an experience that intensified his militancy. In 1984, Zawahiri was released from prison. The following year he left for Saudi Arabia. From Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, he returned to Peshawar and then moved on to Afghanistan. During this period, Zawahiri became acquainted with Osama bin Laden, a wealthy Saudi who had joined the Afghan resistance to the Soviets.  In 1988, Zawahiri was present at the founding of al-Qaeda.

In the early 1990s, Zawahiri assumed leadership of the militant group Egyptain Islamic Jihad (EIJ). Bin Laden had departed for Sudan in 1992, and Zawahiri ultimately joined him there. Sudan served as a base for the training of militants and for attacks on Egyptian targets, including attacks on government officials and on the Egyptian embassy in Pakistan. In June 1995, an unsuccessful attempt was made to assassinate Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Under international pressure, the Sudanese eventually expelled Zawahiri and bin Laden, along with their followers.

Zawahiri’s next movements are unclear. he appears to have traveled to European countries that included Switzerland, Bulgaria, and the Netherlands. In late 1996 he was arrested by Russian officials while illegally crossing the border en route to Chechnya, where he planned to launch a new base for EIJ. Although he was jailed for six months, Russian agents were apparently unaware of his identity until after his release.

In 1998, Zawahiri and bin Laden forged a formal alliance, and in June 2001 EIJ and al-Qaeda were merged. Zawahiri was closely affiliated with both the bombing of the USS Cole in October 2000 and the attacks of September 11, 2001.  Zawahiri gradually became al-Qaeda’s chief spokesman, issuing commentary on issues such as the United States invasion of Iraq in 2003 and the 2006 warfare between Hezbollah and Israel.  In 2009, the United States Department of State determined that Zawahiri appeared to be al-Qaeda’s leading decision maker, while bin Laden reportedly occupied a figurehead status.

Zawahiri assumed formal leadership of al-Qaeda in June 2011, following bin Laden’s death during an American commando raid in Abbottabad, Pakistan, the previous month. The group struggled to reclaim its relevance and maintain its organizational integrity after Zawahiri took the reins. Al-Qaeda's affiliate in Iraq,  the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL); also called Islamic State in Iraq and Syria [ISIS]), bucked Zawahiri’s management in 2013. The Nusrah Front, al-Qaeda’s most prominent affiliate in the Syrian Civil War, rejected Zawahiri’s command in 2016. Both groups ultimately severed ties with al-Qaeda.

After the Taliban gained control of Afghanistan in 2021, and after the United States withdrew its remaining troops, Zawahiri took up residence in Kabul,  the capital city of Afghanistan. The United States, after learning his whereabouts, killed Ayman al-Zawahiri with a drone strike on July 31, 2022. 

Ghazi Muhammad, The First Imam of the Caucasian Imamate

 Muhammad, Ghazi

Ghazi Muhammad, also known as Qazi Mullah or Ghazi Mollah (b. 1793, Ghimry, Dagestan – d. 1832, Ghimry, Dagestan, Caucasian Imamate), became an Islamic scholar and ascetic, who became the first Imam of the Caucasian Imamate (from 1828 to 1832). He promoted the Sacred Law of Sharia, spiritual purification (tasawwuf), and facilitated a jihad against the invading Russians. He was also one of the prime supporters of Muridism, a strict obedience to Quranic laws used by imams to increase religio-patriotic fervor in the Caucasus. 

Ghazi Muhammad preached that jihad would not occur until the Caucasians followed sharia completely rather than following a mixture of sharia and adat (customary traditions). By 1828, Ghazi Muhammad had begun proselytizing and claiming that obeying sharia, giving zakat, faithfully praying, and performing the hajj would not be accepted by Allah if the Russians were still present in the area. He even went on to claim that marriages would become void and children bastards if any Russians were still in the Caucasus.

Ghazi Muhammad became one of the most prominent preachers of Islam in the Caucasus. His memorization of over four hundred hadith allowed him to win many debates against rival preachers in the area. As his reputation grew, he was invited by many khanates and kingdoms loyal, indifferent, and hostile to the Czar.  As a sign of humility and austerity, he refused to ride, but would walk.

During the early to mid 19th century of the Christian calendar, Russian political strategy in Dagestan included supporting local, indigenous law, known as 'adat.  This was a careful and strategic investment against the growing religiosity and resistance founded on sharia law, which was championed by Ghazi Muhammad. The popularity and rise of Ghazi Muhammad has been attributed both to his charismatic personality and to an indigenous Dagestani population that had grown tired of Russian intrusion and reorganization of local land and resources. Due to conflicting local political, legal, and religious interests, the war led by Ghazi Muhammad has been characterized as a war in the name of Muslim resistance just as much as a war against Russian Imperial encroachment into the North Caucasus.  While Ghazi Muhammad gained popular support for his religious policies and military tactics, he did not find widespread support among the region's other political leaders. This lack of support prompted Ghazi Muhammad to launch assaults both against local leaders who preferred to ascribe to ‘adat and against the encroaching Russians. As such, support for Ghazi Muhammad was not ubiquitous in Dagestan and his rise to power resulted in unrest among local political stakeholders.

In 1829, Ghazi Muhammad was proclaimed the first Imam of Caucasian Imamate in Ghimry.  Soon thereafter, Ghazi Muhammad formally made the call for a holy war -- for a jihad. He also decreed that all wine should be destroyed publicly. 

In 1830, Ghazi Muhammad and Shamil unsuccessfully tried to capture the Avar capital of Khunzakh from the khanum Pakkou-Bekkhe. Following the setback, Shamil prevailed upon Ghazi to bide his time for a while, until all the tribes became united in following sharia law. 

In 1831, after a few months of quiet, Ghazi Muhammad attacked Northern Dagestan, and met with success there. His guerilla tactics caught the Russians unprepared. By 1832, Ghazi Muhammad (Qazi Mullah) was able to menace Vladikavkaz. However, the Russians repulsed the Imam's assault and, when the Russians took Ghimry, according to legend, they found

Qazi Mullah dead but seated, legs folded on his prayer carpet, one hand on his beard, and the other pointing toward the sky.

The Russians took the body of Ghazi Muhammad to Tarku, the capital of the Kumyk state, and gave it to the Kumyk Khan, who had been loyal to them. The body was displayed in the marketplace for a few days before being buried in the hills.