Umm Nidal
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Maryam Mohammad Yousif Farhat (), or Mariam Farahat (1949 – 17 March 2013), more commonly known as Umm Nidal () was a Palestinian activist popularly known by Palestinians as the "Mother of Martyrs" for her support for her sons' involvement in attacks against Israel. Three of her sons were members 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 ...
who conducted or participated in the organisation of attacks against Israeli civilian and/or military targets and were killed by Israeli forces, while she was still alive. (A fourth son, also a member of Hamas, was killed in the
Gaza war The Gaza war is an armed conflict in the Gaza Strip and southern Israel fought since 7 October 2023. A part of the unresolved Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Israeli–Palestinian and Gaza–Israel conflict, Gaza–Israel conflicts dating ...
more than a decade after her death.) She was a close associate of the Hamas leadership for over 2 decades. Farhat had strong militant credentials, including an appearance carrying a gun in a video in which she advised one of her sons, Mohammed, on tactics before he attacked a Jewish settlement. Mohammed, 17, killed five Israelis before he was shot dead in the assault in the occupied Gaza Strip in 2002. Farhat’s eldest son, Nidal, was killed in 2003 as he was preparing for another attack. A third son, Rawad, died earlier this year in an Israeli air strike on his car, which was carrying rockets. She also was a member of the
Palestinian Legislative Council The Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) is the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature of the Palestinian National Authority, Palestinian Authority, elected by the Palestinians, Palestinian residents of the Palestinian territories of the Wes ...
for Hamas. Farhat was one of the most prominent Islamist female leaders in Gaza and became an icon of the
Second Intifada The Second Intifada (; ), also known as the Al-Aqsa Intifada, was a major uprising by Palestinians against Israel and its Israeli-occupied territories, occupation from 2000. Starting as a civilian uprising in Jerusalem and October 2000 prot ...
.


Early life

She was born in Shuja'iyya neighborhood in
Gaza City Gaza City, also called Gaza, is a city in the Gaza Strip, Palestine, and the capital of the Gaza Governorate. Located on the Mediterranean coast, southwest of Jerusalem, it was home to Port of Gaza, Palestine's only port. With a population of ...
in 1949.


Family

She had six sons. She had a total of ten children. Her eldest son Nidal was one of the first manufacturers of the
Qassam rocket The Qassam rocket ( ; also ''Kassam'') is a simple, steel artillery rocket developed and deployed by the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military arm of Hamas. These rockets cannot be fired to target specific military objectives in or near ci ...
and helped to make rockets for Hamas and was killed in February 2003 while preparing to conduct an attack. A third son Rawad died in 2005 in an Israeli
airstrike An airstrike, air strike, or air raid is an offensive operation carried out by aircraft. Air strikes are delivered from aircraft such as blimps, balloons, fighter aircraft, attack aircraft, bombers, attack helicopters, and drones. The official d ...
on his car carrying
Qassam rocket The Qassam rocket ( ; also ''Kassam'') is a simple, steel artillery rocket developed and deployed by the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military arm of Hamas. These rockets cannot be fired to target specific military objectives in or near ci ...
. Another son Wisam did time in Israeli prison after attempt of killing then he was the mastermind behind various terrorist acts such as Atzmona Attack, Nahal Oz attack and was killed by the IDF in December 2023 during
Gaza war The Gaza war is an armed conflict in the Gaza Strip and southern Israel fought since 7 October 2023. A part of the unresolved Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Israeli–Palestinian and Gaza–Israel conflict, Gaza–Israel conflicts dating ...
.


Initial activism

In the 1990s, she sheltered Hamas military leaders such as Emad Akel.


Public attention

She came to public attention in 2002 after being filmed carrying a gun and advising her 17-year-old son Muhammad Farhat before his against Israelis. Muhammad entered the
Gaza Strip The Gaza Strip, also known simply as Gaza, is a small territory located on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea; it is the smaller of the two Palestinian territories, the other being the West Bank, that make up the State of Palestine. I ...
former settlement of Atzmona and opened fire and threw hand grenades at Israeli students enrolled in a pre-military school, killing five and wounding 23 others. After the attack, he was shot dead. After Muhammad's death, Farhat said she "wished hehad 100 boys like Muhammad." She became known as "''Khansa of Palestine''" (), a reference to Al-Khansa (one of the companions of
Muhammad Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...
), all four of whose sons were killed in the Battle of Qadisiyah. ''Umm Nidal'' got this title because of her great sacrifices - as in the Palestinian and
Islamic culture Islamic cultures or Muslim cultures refers to the historic cultural practices that developed among the various peoples living in the Muslim world. These practices, while not always religious in nature, are generally influenced by aspects of Islam ...
- during the
Second Intifada The Second Intifada (; ), also known as the Al-Aqsa Intifada, was a major uprising by Palestinians against Israel and its Israeli-occupied territories, occupation from 2000. Starting as a civilian uprising in Jerusalem and October 2000 prot ...
and before that, where her house was home to many prominent leaders of
Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades Al-Qassam Brigades, also known as the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades (EQB; ), are the military wing of the Palestinian nationalist Sunni Islamist organization Hamas. Led by Mohammed Deif until his death on 13 July 2024, Al-Qassam Brigades ar ...
, especially Emad Akel, who was assassinated in her home in 1993 by the
Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and ...
. Otzem Pre-Military Preparatory School in the Israeli settlement of Atzmona


Political career

Farhat ran as a candidate 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 ...
in the
2006 Palestinian legislative election Legislative elections were held in the Palestinian territories on 25 January 2006 in order to elect the second Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC), the legislature of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA). The result was a victory for Hama ...
. She was successfully elected to the
Palestinian Legislative Council The Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) is the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature of the Palestinian National Authority, Palestinian Authority, elected by the Palestinians, Palestinian residents of the Palestinian territories of the Wes ...
.


Views on martyrdom and murder of civilians

In an interview published in both the
Israeli Arab The Arab citizens of Israel form the country's largest ethnic minority. Their community mainly consists of former Palestinian Citizenship Order 1925, Mandatory Palestine citizens (and their descendants) who continued to inhabit the territory ...
weekly '' Kul al-Arab'' and the
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
-based Arabic-language daily '' Al-Quds Al-Arabi'', Umm Nidal said she was proud of her sons. In her December 2005 interview, Umm Nidal said: * "I protect my sons from defying Allah, or from choosing a path that would not please Allah. This is what I fear, when it comes to my sons. But as for sacrifice, Jihad for the sake of Allah, or performing the duty they were charged with - this makes me happy." * (Referring to Israelis) "They are all occupiers. Besides, don't forget that they all serve in the army. They are all considered soldiers. They are all reserve soldiers." * "They are all occupiers, and we must fight them by any legitimate means." * "All means are legitimate as long as the occupation continues." * "There is no difference. This is Islamic religious law. I don't invent anything. I follow Islamic religious law in this. A Muslim is very careful not to kill an innocent person, because he knows he would be destined to eternal Hell. So the issue is not at all simple. We rely on Islamic religious law when we say there is no prohibition on killing these people." * "The word 'peace' does not mean the kind of peace we are experiencing. This peace is, in fact, surrender and a shameful disgrace. Peace means the liberation of all of Palestine, from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea. When this is accomplished - if they want peace, we will be ready. They may live under the banner of the Islamic state. That is the future of Palestine that we are striving towards."


Death

Farhat died on 17 March 2013, aged 64, from multiple organ failure, in Gaza City. Her death was announced by the
Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades Al-Qassam Brigades, also known as the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades (EQB; ), are the military wing of the Palestinian nationalist Sunni Islamist organization Hamas. Led by Mohammed Deif until his death on 13 July 2024, Al-Qassam Brigades ar ...
, Hamas's military wing. Her funeral was attended by 4,000 Palestinians, including top Hamas leaders such as
Ismail Haniyeh Ismail Haniyeh (, ; 29 January 1962 – 31 July 2024) was a Palestinian politician who served as third chairman of the Hamas Political Bureau from May 2017 until Assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, his assassination in July 2024. He also served as ...
.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nidal, Umm 1949 births 2013 deaths Hamas members Female Muslim Brotherhood members Palestinian Muslim Brotherhood members People from Gaza City Members of the 2006 Palestinian Legislative Council 21st-century Palestinian women politicians