Issue No. 613
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21 - 27 November 2002 Issue No. 613 Home news |
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 | |||
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Obituary:
The iron sheikh
Mustafa Mashhour (1921-2002)
Mustafa Mashhour, the supreme guide of the Muslim Brotherhood, died on 14 November at the age of 83. Born in 1921 in Al-Sharqiya governorate, Mashhour led a life of political activism which began in 1938 when, at the age of 17, he joined the brotherhood's ranks. Two years later, he joined the group's paramilitary wing, Al- Tanzeem Al-Khaas (special division).
Mustafa Mashhour
Brotherhood sources deny that Mashhour was close to the group's founder, Hassan El-Banna. As one member put it, "there is not much to be remembered about such a relationship." This may be due to the fact that Mashhour was more involved in the military side of the group's activities. El-Banna was assassinated while Mashhour was serving a three-year prison sentence. He was released, only to be rounded up again, along with hundreds of Brotherhood members, after a member of the Brotherhood attempted, but failed, to assassinate President Gamal Abdel- Nasser in 1954. Mashhour was released in 1971; from then on his activism became political.
In 1973 he rejoined the brotherhood, whose supreme guide at the time was Omar El-Telmsani. He and El-Telmsani co-founded Al-Dawa'a magazine, the group's mouthpiece, in 1976. Mashhour shunned politics for a while, and shortly before Sadat embarked on the infamous September round- ups, Mashhour left the country and settled in Kuwait for five years. He came back to Egypt in 1986 after the death of El-Telmsani. According to Brotherhood sources, El-Telmsani had recommended Mashhour as his successor, but the latter refrained from accepting the post, throwing his weight behind Sheikh Hamed Abul-Nasr instead. Ten years later, when Abul-Nasr died, Mashhour was named the group's fifth guide.
Mashhour took over while the group was in the midst of one of the worst crises in its history. Barely a few months after his ascension, the brotherhood was hit hard by several very important developments: the government crackdown which claimed the group's more pragmatic and dynamic leaders; and the first public act of dissension in its history, involving a group of younger members who applied for the establishment of a legal political party without the knowledge or approval of the group's elders. Although his handling of this act of dissension remained controversial, group members agree that at least he managed to keep the group intact. The incident, however, did have an effect the relationship between the Brotherhood old guard and its younger members, with Mashhour's reign witnessing greater opportunities for younger cadres. In fact, by 2000, when the group decided to participate in parliamentary elections, the entire process was put in the hands of the younger generation, albeit from behind the scenes.
Mashhour's long-running column in Al-Shaab newspaper, mouthpiece of the frozen Labour party, steered clear of politics, dealing mainly in purely religious and doctrinal issues. Aside from his political activism, Mashhour was a civil servant, employed by the meteorological authority from 1942, shortly after his graduation from the faculty of science, until his retirement in 1977. Because of his frequent arrests, he was never promoted.
In total, Mashhour served some two decades in prison, which might explain why he was dubbed the Iron Sheikh by close associates. He is survived by four sons.
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