Abu Zant
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Sheikh Abdul Munem Abu Zant (, 28 September 1937 – 26 July 2015) was a Jordanian Muslim scholar and politician. He was member of the
House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...
between 1989 and 1997 for the
Islamic Action Front The Islamic Action Front (IAF; ) is an Islamist political party in Jordan. It was the political wing of the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan. Founded in 1992 with 350 members, Ahmed Azaida, Ishaq Al-Farhan and Abdul Latif Arabiyat were the main f ...
. He was an opponent of the
Israel–Jordan peace treaty The Israel–Jordan peace treaty (formally the "Treaty of Peace Between the State of Israel and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan"),; Hebrew transliteration, transliterated: ''Heskem Ha-Shalom beyn Yisra'el Le-Yarden''; ; Arabic transliteration: ' ...
and a supporter of
Hamas The Islamic Resistance Movement, abbreviated Hamas (the Arabic acronym from ), is a Palestinian nationalist Sunni Islam, Sunni Islamism, Islamist political organisation with a military wing, the Qassam Brigades. It has Gaza Strip under Hama ...
. Abu Zant frequently criticized the
Western world The Western world, also known as the West, primarily refers to various nations and state (polity), states in Western Europe, Northern America, and Australasia; with some debate as to whether those in Eastern Europe and Latin America also const ...
and especially the United States and Israel. He was also critical of moderate Islamic regimes in the Middle East. Abu Zant had confrontations with the Jordanian government several times. He was banned from delivering sermons in 1994 and was arrested several times for breaching that prohibition the same year. Critique of government actions against Hamas had him arrested in 1999 and 2001.


Career

Abu Zant was born in
Nablus Nablus ( ; , ) is a State of Palestine, Palestinian city in the West Bank, located approximately north of Jerusalem, with a population of 156,906. Located between Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim, it is the capital of the Nablus Governorate and a ...
on 28 September 1937. At one point he became member of the
Muslim Brotherhood The Society of the Muslim Brothers ('' ''), better known as the Muslim Brotherhood ( ', is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by Islamic scholar, Imam and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna in 1928. Al-Banna's teachings s ...
. He was elected to the
House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...
during the
1989 Jordanian general election General elections were held in Jordan on 8 November 1989, the first since 1967.Dieter Nohlen, Florian Grotz & Christof Hartmann (2001) ''Elections in Asia: A data handbook, Volume I'', p148 As political parties were banned at the time, all 647 c ...
s. Abu Zant was a member of the House between 1989 and 1997 (or 1990 and 1998) for the
Islamic Action Front The Islamic Action Front (IAF; ) is an Islamist political party in Jordan. It was the political wing of the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan. Founded in 1992 with 350 members, Ahmed Azaida, Ishaq Al-Farhan and Abdul Latif Arabiyat were the main f ...
(IAF), serving during three parliaments. Abu Zant called himself the leader of the most radical section of the party. Within the IAF Abu Zant had a sizeable group of followers. During his time in parliament Abu Zant supported introducing
prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic b ...
as well as a mandatory headscarf for Muslim women. When female Representative Faisal kept her own style of dress in parliament Abu Zant offered her an Islamic garb and sweets to stop wearing her own clothes and make-up. Abu Zant was an opponent of the
Coalition forces The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) was a multinational military mission in Afghanistan from 2001 to 2014. It was established by United Nations Security Council Resolution 1386 according to the Bonn Agreement, which outlined t ...
during the
Gulf War , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...
. He called the Gulf War: "not a war between Iraq and the U.S., but rather one between Islam and the infidels". He subsequently called for a
jihad ''Jihad'' (; ) is an Arabic word that means "exerting", "striving", or "struggling", particularly with a praiseworthy aim. In an Islamic context, it encompasses almost any effort to make personal and social life conform with God in Islam, God ...
against Western forces involved in the Gulf War. Abu Zant called the Arab regimes that took part in the Gulf War against Iraq apostates. During and after the Gulf War Abu Zant was a frequent speaker at Friday preaching ceremonies at mosques. In 1994 Abu Zant was prohibited from delivering sermons by the Ministry of Awqaf Islamic Affairs and Holy Places, after he criticized the
Israel–Jordan peace treaty The Israel–Jordan peace treaty (formally the "Treaty of Peace Between the State of Israel and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan"),; Hebrew transliteration, transliterated: ''Heskem Ha-Shalom beyn Yisra'el Le-Yarden''; ; Arabic transliteration: ' ...
, which had been signed that year. The same year he violated his prohibition when he spoke in a mosque criticizing the peace treacy. A scuffle occurred in which Abu Zant was injured, with Abu Zant and his followers and other preachers claiming the police acted violently, while the police blamed the followers of the official imam of the mosque, Sami al-Najjar, who had been prevented from delivering his own speech by Abu Zant. He later criticized official clerics in parliament, claiming that they were asking God to be merciful on Israelis, with Abu Zant referring to the Israelis as "the killers of all God's emissaries and prophets".Wiktorowicz, 62. Shortly afterwards Abu Zant was arrested for criticizing an Amman court which was holding trials against people claimed of disturbing the peace during anti-peace treaty demonstrations. In 1994 Abu Zant wrote several articles in the newspaper '' Al Arab Al Yawm'', which led to chief editor's arrest, as well as his own. In late November the two men were brought before a court on charges of slandering Prime Minister
Abdelsalam al-Majali Abdelsalam Atalla al-Majali ( ; ; 18 February 1925 – 3 January 2023) was a Jordanian physician and politician who served twice as Prime Minister of Jordan. Early life and education Majali was born in Al-Karak, Emirate of Transjordan, on 18 Fe ...
. In September 1999 the governor of Amman, Qaftan Majali, asked Abu Zant to sign a pledge withholding him from keeping pro-Hamas speeches. Abu Zant refused and was placed under administrative arrest. In total he was arrested three times during the month for violating the Sermons Law of Jordan. Shortly before his arrest he had criticized a government crackdown on
Hamas The Islamic Resistance Movement, abbreviated Hamas (the Arabic acronym from ), is a Palestinian nationalist Sunni Islam, Sunni Islamism, Islamist political organisation with a military wing, the Qassam Brigades. It has Gaza Strip under Hama ...
supporters, which happened in August. The
Muslim Brotherhood The Society of the Muslim Brothers ('' ''), better known as the Muslim Brotherhood ( ', is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by Islamic scholar, Imam and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna in 1928. Al-Banna's teachings s ...
subsequently demanded his release. During his life Abu Zant had been expelled from
Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
,
Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...
and
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...
as his voiced opinions were deemed to radical. In 2001, with tensions relaxing between Israelis and Palestinians and a possible peace deal ahead, Jordan launched actions against Hamas. Both the Muslim Brotherhood and the Islamic Action Front protested against these, although the protests were not large. Abu Zant however did protest fiercely, accusing the Jordanian government of collaborating with the United States and the Israeli intelligence agency
Mossad The Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations (), popularly known as Mossad ( , ), is the national intelligence agency of the Israel, State of Israel. It is one of the main entities in the Israeli Intelligence Community, along with M ...
, which led to him being arrested. In 2014 during an interview on
Al-Aqsa TV Al-Aqsa TV () is a television channel run by Hamas, which is based in the Gaza Strip. Its programs include news and propaganda promoting Hamas, children's shows, and religiously inspired entertainment. It is currently directed by Fathi Hamad, w ...
Abu Zant accused Jews of
blood libel Blood libel or ritual murder libel (also blood accusation) is an antisemitic canardTurvey, Brent E. ''Criminal Profiling: An Introduction to Behavioral Evidence Analysis'', Academic Press, 2008, p. 3. "Blood libel: An accusation of ritual mu ...
and cannibalism. Abu Zant died on 26 July 2015. Jordanian House Speaker
Atef Tarawneh Atef Tarawneh (born 1 January 1954) is a Jordanian politician who has been the Speaker of Jordan's House of Representatives from 3 November 2013 to 10 December 2020. He was a member of the House of Representatives from 2003 to 2020. Early life T ...
praised Abu Zant for his patriotism and dedication while being member of the House. Three days after his death Jordanian King
Abdullah II Abdullah II (Abdullah bin Hussein; born 30 January 1962) is King of Jordan, having ascended the throne on 7 February 1999. He is a member of the Hashemites, who have been the reigning royal family of Jordan since 1921, and is traditionally reg ...
visited Abu Zant's family to extend his condolences.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abu Zant 1937 births 2015 deaths Islamic Action Front politicians Palestinian emigrants to Jordan Members of the House of Representatives (Jordan) Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood members People from Nablus