Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami ( ar, حركة الجهاد الإسلامي, ''Ḥarkat al-Jihād al-Islāmiyah'', meaning "Islamic Jihad Movement", HuJI) is a Pakistani

Islamic fundamentalist Islamic fundamentalism has been defined as a puritanical, revivalist, and reform movement of Muslims who aim to return to the founding scriptures of Islam. Islamic fundamentalists are of the view that Muslim-majority countries should return t ...

Jihadist Jihadism is a neologism which is used in reference to "militant Islamic movements that are perceived as existentially threatening to the West" and "rooted in political Islam."Compare: Appearing earlier in the Pakistani and Indian media, Wes ...

organisation affiliated with

Al-Qaeda Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military targets in various countr ...

and

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...

. Designated as terrorist group by some nations most active in South Asian countries of

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mo ...

and

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

since the early 1990s. It was banned in Bangladesh in 2005. The operational commander of HuJI,

Ilyas Kashmiri Ilyas Kashmiri, also referred to as Maulana Ilyas Kashmiri, Mufti Ilyas Kashmiri and Muhammad Ilyas Kashmiri (10 February 1964 – 3 June 2011), was a Pakistani ex-Special Forces Islamist guerrilla insurgent who fought against India in K ...

, was killed in a US

drone strike Drone warfare is a form of aerial warfare using unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAV) or weaponized commercial unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV). The United States, United Kingdom, Israel, China, South Korea, Iran, Italy, France, India, Pakist ...

in South Waziristan on 4 June 2011. He was linked to the 13 February 2010 bombing of a German bakery in Pune. A statement was released soon after the attack which claimed to be from Kashmiri; it threatened other cities and major sporting events in India. A local Taliban commander named Shah Sahib was named as Kashmiri's successor.

History

HuJI or HJI was formed in 1984, during the

Soviet–Afghan War The Soviet–Afghan War was a protracted armed conflict fought in the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan from 1979 to 1989. It saw extensive fighting between the Soviet Union and the Afghan mujahideen (alongside smaller groups of anti-Soviet ...

, by

Fazlur Rehman Khalil Fazal ur Rehman Khalil ( ur, ) is a founder of ''Harkat-ul-Mujahideen (HuM)'' and current leader of '' Ansar-ul-Umma'', which is accused of being a front organization of the banned HuM. He also runs the ''Jamia Khalid Bin Walid'', a madrasa or I ...

and Qari Saifullah Akhtar. Khalil later broke away to form his own group,

Harkat-ul-Ansar Harkat-ul-Mujahideen- al-Islami ( ur, ; HUM) is a Pakistan-based Islamic jihad group operating primarily in Kashmir.

(HuA), which became the most feared militant organisation in Kashmir. This group would later re-form as

Harkat-ul-Mujahideen Harkat-ul-Mujahideen- al-Islami ( ur, ; HUM) is a Pakistan-based Islamic jihad group operating primarily in Kashmir.Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Kashmir, the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered ...

. HuJI's influence expanded into Bangladesh when the Bangladesh unit was established in 1992, with direct assistance from

Osama bin Laden Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden (10 March 1957 – 2 May 2011) was a Saudi-born extremist militant who founded al-Qaeda and served as its leader from 1988 until his death in 2011. Ideologically a pan-Islamist, his group is designated ...

.Sudha Ramachandran
'PART 2: Behind the Harkat-ul Jihad al-Islami'
''Asia Times Online'', 10 December 2004

Ideology

The organisation along with other jihadists groups such as

Harkat-ul-Mujahideen Harkat-ul-Mujahideen- al-Islami ( ur, ; HUM) is a Pakistan-based Islamic jihad group operating primarily in Kashmir.Jaish-e-Mohammed,

Lashkar-e-Taiba Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT; ur, ; literally ''Army of the Good'', translated as ''Army of the Righteous'', or ''Army of the Pure'' and alternatively spelled as ''Lashkar-e-Tayyiba'', ''Lashkar-e-Toiba'', ''Lashkar-i-Taiba'', ''Lashkar-i-Tayyeba'') ...

had similar motivations and goals.Harkat-ul-Jihad al-Islami and

Harkat-ul-Mujahideen Harkat-ul-Mujahideen- al-Islami ( ur, ; HUM) is a Pakistan-based Islamic jihad group operating primarily in Kashmir.Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...

& therefore the group professed

-style fundamentalist Islam The organisation aims to spread Radical Islamist ideology to liberate the

Kashmir Kashmir () is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term "Kashmir" denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. Today, the term encompas ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is borde ...

, Palestine & the rest of Islamic lands from the clutches of the enemies of

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ...

& enforce

Sharia law Sharia (; ar, شريعة, sharīʿa ) is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the religious precepts of Islam and is based on the sacred scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran and the H ...

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

majority areas.

Activities in Bangladesh

In the 1990s, the training for these recruits was given in the hilly areas of

Chittagong Chittagong ( /ˈtʃɪt əˌɡɒŋ/ ''chit-uh-gong''; ctg, চিটাং; bn, চিটাগং), officially Chattogram ( bn, চট্টগ্রাম), is the second-largest city in Bangladesh after Dhaka and third largest city in ...

and

Cox's Bazar Cox's Bazar (; bn, কক্সবাজার, Kôksbajar; ) is a city, fishing port, tourism centre, and district headquarters in Southeastern Bangladesh. It is located south of the city of Chittagong. Cox's Bazar is also known by the n ...

. Later on, members of the group made an attempt on the life of Shamsur Rahman, the liberal poet in January 1999. HuJi claimed responsibility for the

2001 Ramna Batamul bombings The Ramna Batamul bombing was a series of bomb attacks on 14 April 2001 at a cultural programme of the Pahela Baishakh celebrations arranged by Chaayanot, the leading cultural organization of Bangladesh. Ten people, including Shujan, a Harkat-ul ...

, which killed 10 people. A member of the suicide squad of HuJi also died. Committed to establishing an Islamic rule, HuJI was the prime suspect in a scheme to assassinate the

Prime Minister of Bangladesh The Prime Minister of Bangladesh ( bn, বাংলাদেশের প্রধানমন্ত্রী, translit=Bangladesher Prodhanmontri), officially Prime Minister of the People's Republic of Bangladesh ( bn, গণপ্রজা ...

Sheikh Hasina Sheikh Hasina Wazed (''née'' Sheikh Hasina ; ; bn, শেখ হাসিনা ওয়াজেদ, Shēkh Hasinā, , born 28 September 1947) is a Bangladeshi politician who has served as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh since January 2 ...

in the year 2000. In October 2005, it was officially banned by the government of Bangladesh. The group has been condemned by Islamist groups such as the

Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh ( bn, হেফাজতে ইসলাম বাংলাদেশ) is an Islamic Advocacy group of madrassah teachers and students. In 2013, it submitted to the government of Bangladesh a 13-point charter, which inc ...

Activities in India

Government of India The Government of India ( ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...

has declared and banned it as a terrorist organisation. In April 2006, the state police Special Task Force in India uncovered a plot by six HuJI terrorists, including the mastermind behind the 2006 Varanasi bombings, involving the destruction of two

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

temples in the Indian city of

Varanasi Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world. * * * * The city has a syncretic t ...

. Maps of their plans were recovered during their arrest. Huji has claimed responsibility for blasts at the

Delhi High Court The High Court of Delhi (IAST: ''dillī uchcha nyāyālaya'') was established on 31 October 1966, through the ''Delhi High Court Act, 1966'', with four judges, Chief Justice K. S. Hegde, Justice I. D. Dua, Justice H. R. Khanna and Justice S. ...

which claimed the lives of 10 and injured around 60.

Vikar Ahmed Vikar Ahmed (died 7 April 2015) also known as Vikaruddin was an activist of the Darsgah-Jihad-O-Shahadat. He is a suspect in the Mecca Masjid bombing. He was absconding from Andhra Pradesh police but was caught in July 2010. He was accused of bei ...

, a member of an Islamist group, and connected to HuJI, has been accused of murdering police officers in Hyderabad. He is also a suspect in the

Mecca Masjid bombing The Mecca Masjid blast occurred on 18 May 2007 inside the Mecca Masjid, (or "Makkah Masjid") a mosque located in the old city area of Hyderabad, capital of the Indian state of Telangana located very close to Charminar. The blast was caused b ...

. Harkat-ul-Jihad al-Islami has claimed responsibility for the

2011 Delhi bombing The 2011 Delhi bombing took place in the Indian capital Delhi on Wednesday, 7 September 2011 at 10:14 local time outside Gate No. 5 of the Delhi High Court, where a suspected briefcase bomb was planted. The blast killed 15 people and injured 79. ...

. However, this has not been confirmed by the

National Investigation Agency The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is the primary counter-terrorist task force of India. The agency is empowered to deal with the investigation of terror related crimes across states without special permission from the states under written ...

. 14 people were killed and 94 people were injured in the bomb blast. Police have released two sketches of the suspects. Here is the Embedded video link for this latest attack. This link has English news video clip. This is in Hindi Language. Also as clear in the video links, they have also made threats to target other Indian cities.

Designation as a terrorist organisation

Countries and organisations below have officially listed Harkat-ul-Jihad al-Islami (HUJI) as a terrorist organisation. On 6 August 2010, the United Nations designated Harakat-ul Jihad al-Islami as a foreign terror group and blacklisted its commander

. State Department counterterrorism coordinator Daniel Benjamin asserted that the actions taken demonstrated the global community's resolve to counter the group's threat. "The linkages between HUJI and Al-Qaeda are clear, and today's designations convey the operational relationship between these organizations," Benjamin said.

Militant attacks claimed by or attributed to HuJI

References

External links

Profile of HuJI-Bangladesh (HuJI-B)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harkat-Ul-Jihad Al-Islami Organisations designated as terrorist by the United Kingdom Jihadist groups in Bangladesh Jihadist groups in Pakistan Jihadist groups in India Organisations designated as terrorist by India Organizations based in Asia designated as terrorist Organizations established in the 1990s Deobandi organisations Jihadist groups in Jammu and Kashmir Organizations designated as terrorist by Israel Organisations designated as terrorist by New Zealand Organizations designated as terrorist by the United States