Ahmed Yassin
Palestinian political and religious leader (1936–2004) / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Sheikh Ahmed Ismail Hassan Yassin (Arabic: الشيخ أحمد إسماعيل حسن ياسين; June 1936 – 22 March 2004)[2] was a Palestinian politician and imam who founded Hamas, a militant Islamist and Palestinian nationalist organization in the Gaza Strip, in 1987.[3][4][5][6][7]
Ahmed Yassin | |
---|---|
أحمد ياسين | |
Born | June 1936 (1936-06) |
Died | 22 March 2004(2004-03-22) (aged 67) |
Cause of death | Assassination |
Nationality | Palestinian |
Education | Al-Azhar University, Cairo |
Occupations |
|
Organization | Hamas |
Yassin was born in Ashkelon, in Mandatory Palestine in 1929 or 1936. His family fled or were expelled during the 1948 Palestine War to Gaza City. Yassin, a quadriplegic who was nearly blind, had been reliant on a wheelchair due to a sporting accident at the age of 12.[8]
He served as Hamas' spiritual leader after its founding, which is designated a terrorist organization by the US, the EU and other countries.[9] The Israeli government held him responsible for the killing of several Israeli civilians.[10] In 2004, he was killed when an Israeli helicopter gunship fired a missile at him as he was being wheeled from Fajr prayer in Gaza City.[11] The attack, which also killed both of his bodyguards and nine bystanders, was internationally condemned.[11] 200,000 Palestinians attended his funeral procession in Gaza.[12]