Mohammed Yusuf (Boko Haram)
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Mohammed Yusuf (29 January 1970 – 30 July 2009), also known as Ustaz Mohammed Yusuf, was a Nigerian Muslim sect leader. He was born in Girgir village, in Jakusko, present day Yobe State, Nigeria.[1] He founded the militant Islamist group Boko Haram in 2002 and was its spiritual leader until he was killed in the 2009 Boko Haram uprising.[2] The group's official name is "Jama'atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda'awati wal-Jihad", which in Arabic means "People Committed to the Propagation of the Prophet's Teachings and Jihad".[3] Yusuf was a Salafi.[4]
Beliefs
According to the University of California at Santa Cruz's Paul Lubeck, Yusuf received instruction in Salafism and was strongly influenced by Ibn Taymiyyah.[5]
In a 2009 BBC interview, Yusuf stated his belief that the concept of a spherical Earth is contrary to Islamic teaching and should be rejected, along with Darwinian evolution, and the concept of rain originating from water evaporated by the sun.[6] In the interview he said:
"There are prominent Islamic preachers who have seen and understood that the present Western-style education is mixed with issues that run contrary to our beliefs in Islam," he said.
"Like rain. We believe it is a creation of God rather than an evaporation caused by the sun that condenses and becomes rain.
"Like saying the world is a sphere. If it runs contrary to the teachings of Allah, we reject it. We also reject the theory of Darwinism."
Personal life
Yusuf had four wives and 12 children.[7]
Nigerian academic Hussain Zakaria told BBC News that the controversial cleric had a graduate education, spoke proficient English, lived a lavish lifestyle and drove a Mercedes-Benz.[6]
Death
Following the July 2009 Boko Haram uprising, the Nigerian military captured Yusuf in his parents-in-law's house and handed him over to the Nigerian police force.[8] The police then summarily executed him in public view outside the police headquarters in Maiduguri.[9][10][11] Police officials initially claimed that either Yusuf was shot while trying to escape or died of wounds he sustained during a gunbattle with the military.[10][11]
References
- ↑ "West African Militancy and Violence", page 74
- ↑ Boko Haram: The Emerging Jihadist Threat in West Africa - Background, Anti-Defamation League, December 12, 2011.
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External links
- Al Jazeera (9 February 2010), Video shows Nigeria 'executions'
- Duodu, Cameron (6 August 2009), Mohammed Yusuf's final days, The Guardian
- Human Rights Watch (2012), Spiraling Violence: Boko Haram Attacks and Security Force Abuses in Nigeria
- Murtada, Ahmad (2013), Boko Haram: Its Beginnings, Principles and Activities in Nigeria, Islamic Studies Department, University of Bayero, Kano, Nigeria
