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| Salafist Call | |
|---|---|
| Name | Salafist Call |
| Founded | 1970s |
| Headquarters | Cairo, Egypt |
| Ideology | Salafism, Sunni Islam |
| Area served | Egypt, Middle East, North Africa |
Salafist Call
The Salafist Call is an Egyptian Sunni Islamist movement associated with Salafism that emerged in the late 20th century. It evolved within the milieu of Egyptian religious activism linked to figures and institutions in Cairo, Alexandria, and other urban centers, intersecting with currents connected to Al-Azhar University, Muslim Brotherhood, Jamāʿat al-Ikhwān al-Muslimīn, and broader Sunni revivalist networks such as those tied to Abd al-ʿAzīz ibn Baz, Muhammad Nasir al-Din al-Albani, and Rashid Rida. The movement has engaged with charitable, educational, and political arenas, producing friction with secular, liberal, and leftist currents including Nasserism, Wafd Party, and Egyptian Communist Party.
The group's origins trace to religious currents in 1970s and 1980s Egypt influenced by returning expatriates from Saudi Arabia, clerical debates at Al-Azhar University, and the publishing networks of journals linked to Rashid Rida and the revivalist legacy of Ibn Taymiyyah. Early organizing occurred in neighborhoods of Cairo, Alexandria, and Giza, often overlapping with mosques associated with scholars who studied in Medina, Riyadh, and Kuwait City. The movement grew amid political openings under Anwar Sadat and later restrictions under Hosni Mubarak, leading activists to emphasize daʿwa, education, and social services in reaction to state repression and competition with Muslim Brotherhood branches. The 2011 Egyptian Revolution of 2011 and the 2012–2013 political crisis reshaped alliances, interactions with parties such as Al-Nour Party, and controversies involving security institutions like the Central Security Forces.
The Salafist Call articulates a theology rooted in classical Salafi references, citing authorities such as Ibn Taymiyyah, Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya, and modern jurists like Abd al-Wahhab al-Turayhi and Muhammad Nasir al-Din al-Albani. It emphasizes scriptural literalism grounded in the Quran and Sunnah, endorses Ahl al-Sunna interpretations prominent in Saudi Arabia and Gulf Cooperation Council doctrinal circles, and rejects theological positions associated with Ashʿarism and Maturidism as practiced by parts of Al-Azhar University. On jurisprudence, the group has allied with Salafi jurists linked to schools prevalent in Hanbali scholarship, while engaging fatwa networks connected to figures in Riyadh and Medina. Its approach to political theory often references concepts debated in texts circulated among activists and in publications tied to Sayyid Qutb and critics of Qutb such as Taqi al-Din al-Nabhani.
Organizationally, the movement developed a networked configuration of local daʿwa committees, mosque-based cells, charitable societies, and educational clubs. Leadership tended to be charismatic and clerically oriented, involving prominent preachers and scholars associated with Cairo mosques and Islamic institutes. The movement has seen cadres who trained in institutions like Al-Azhar University, Zaytuna College, and seminaries linked to Dar al-Ulum. Relationships with political parties such as Al-Nour Party and with non-governmental organizations operating in Cairo and Alexandria shaped internal governance, while state security organs like the General Intelligence Directorate (Egypt) periodically intervened in leadership disputes and arrests.
The movement established extensive social programs including zakat distribution, Qur'an memorization (hafiz) classes, marriage counseling, and youth offices operating in neighborhoods across Egypt and urban centers such as Cairo and Alexandria. It ran charitable clinics, vocational training tied to labor markets in Port Said and Suez, and summer camps modeled on forms used by transnational Salafi networks in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Educational outreach included study circles referencing classical texts by Ibn Kathir and manuals influenced by Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, as well as media projects employing cassette and later satellite channels similar to those used by regional actors like Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabiya.
Politically, the movement's public posture shifted from abstentionism to tactical engagement, culminating in cooperation with the Salafi-oriented Al-Nour Party during the post-2011 transition. Activists contested elections for local councils and national assemblies, interacting with actors such as Mohamed Morsi, Hesham Qandil, and secular parties including Free Egyptians Party and Social Democratic Party. The movement's influence affected debates over constitutional articles, family law discussions in parliament, and municipal governance in governorates like Giza and Minya, while provoking responses from state institutions including the Supreme Constitutional Court of Egypt.
Critics from liberal, secular, and leftist circles, including commentators aligned with Al-Ahram and academicians at Cairo University, have accused the movement of intolerance toward pluralism, gender segregation policies, and rigid interpretations of law. Rival Islamist groups such as Muslim Brotherhood and Salafi-jihadist organizations like Al-Qaeda affiliates have also contested its strategy or condemned its political choices. Security incidents, high-profile arrests, and debates over alleged links with foreign funding from Gulf sources such as entities in Riyadh and Doha intensified scrutiny by international NGOs and watchdogs including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International.
While principally Egyptian, the movement maintained transnational ties through networks of scholars, charities, and students connected to Gulf Cooperation Council countries, Sudan, Libya, and diaspora communities in Europe and North America. It engaged with international Islamic institutions and faced diplomatic scrutiny from states including United States, France, and Turkey amid concerns over radicalization, counter-extremism policies, and migration-linked proselytizing. Regional events such as the Arab Spring and conflicts in Syria and Libya affected its recruitment, humanitarian involvements, and relationships with transnational Salafi currents.
Category:Islamic movements