Underground activism: The Muslim Brotherhood as a mass-underground movement 1954-1970, continuity and transformation.

On 26 October 1954, an alleged attempt on Gamal ‘Abd al-Nasser’s life, at al-Manshiyya square in Alexandria, marked a watershed in the history of the Muslim Brotherhood. Following the incident thousands of Brotherhood activists were arrested, and a hitherto unprecedented campaign of repression were inflicted on the Brotherhood. During the following months, 6 high-ranking members had been hanged and hundreds had received long prison terms. For many observers, the Brotherhood seemed to have disappeared from the Egyptian scene, as a result of the persecution.  

 

As a consequence, western research have not comprehensively studied the history of the Muslim Brotherhood during this decisive period. This seminar explores the historical events that shaped the evolution of the Brotherhood during this period of ordeal “Miḥna”.

 

 

Ahmed El Zalaf is a PhD Candidate at the Department of History at the University of Southern Denmark. His dissertation studies the historical evolution of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt during the Nasserite years, 1954-70.

 

 

 

If you have any questions concerning the seminar, please contact our CIMS coordinator, Alexandra H. Koritzinsky, either by email: a.h.koritzinsky@ikos.uio.no, or at: (+47) 957 21 103.