Izala Society

Izala Society or Jama'atu Izalatil Bid’ah Wa Iqamatus Sunnah (Society for the Removal of Bid'ah and Re-establishment of the Sunnah), also known as JIBWIS, is a Salafi organization originally established in Northern Nigeria to fight what it sees as the Bid'ah and Shirk practiced by the Sufi orders. It is one of the largest Sunni societies in Nigeria, Chad, Ghana, Niger, and Cameroon.

Jama'atu Izalatil Bid'a Wa Iqamatus Sunnah

Ƙungiyar Izala
Abbreviation	JIBWIS
Predecessor	Sheikh Isma'ila Idris
Merged into	Hadaddiyar Kungiyar JIBWIS Jos Nigeria
Successor	Sani Yahaya Jingir
Founder	Sheikh Isma'ila Idris
Purpose	Promoting Islamic fundamentalism
Headquarters	Jos, Nigeria
Location	Has 36 state headquarters including the Federal Capital Territory (Abuja)
Region	West Africa
National Chairman	Sheikh Sani Yahaya Jingir and Sheikh Sheikh Abdullahi Bala Lau[1]
Key people	Sheikh Kabir Gombe[2]
Affiliations	Salafism

Organization

JIBWIS was established in 1978 in Jos, Nigeria by Sheikh Isma'ila Idris (1937-2000)^[3] in reaction to the Sufi orders,^[4] specifically the Qadiriyya and Tijjaniyya who practice Sufism. Today JIBWIS is one of the largest Salafi societies not only in Northern Nigeria, but also in the South and even in the neighbouring countries (Chad, Niger, and Cameroon). It is very active in Dawah (propagation of the faith) and especially in education. The Izala has many institutions all over the country and is influential at the local, state, and federal levels.^[3]

The group has been called a Salafi organisation "that embraces a legalist and scripture centred upon understanding of Islam".^[5] David Commins has described it as the fruit of missionary work by the Saudi Arabian funded and led by the World Muslim League.^[6][7] "Essential texts" for members of the JIBWIS are "Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab's treatise of God's unity and commentaries by his grandsons". Ibn Abd al-Wahhab was the founder of the Wahhabi mission, the official Islamic interpretation of Saudi Arabia. He saw Sufism as rife with Shirk.^[8] The Izala Society has been considered the most nonviolent and educated Islamist group, among there activities include public preaching, Qur'anic recitation competition, lectures, seminar, workshop and other public insights.^[9]

Prominent members

• Sheikh Abubakar Gumi (1924-1992)
• Sheikh Isma'ila Idris
• Sheikh Sani Yahaya Jingir
• Sheikh Isah Ali Pantami
• Dr Ahmad Abubakar Gumi
• Sheikh Yakubu Musa Katsina
• Alaramma Ahmad Sulaiman
• Sheikh Aminu Ibrahim Daurawa
• Sheikh Bello Yabo
• Prof Sani Umar Rijiyar Lemu^[10]
• Sheikh Kabiru Gombe
• Sheikh Abdullahi Bala Lau^[11]
• Sheikh Jalo Jalingo
• Dr Sulaiman Adam (chief Imam Sultan Bello Mosque)

See also

• Islamic extremism in Northern Nigeria
• Islamic fundamentalism
• Salafism
• Wahhabism
• Idrisiyya
• Qadiriyya
• Tijaniyya

References

1. Ibrahim, Yusha'u A (16 December 2011). "Nigeria: Sheikh Bala Lau Now Izala National Chair". allafrica.com. Retrieved 4 February 2024.
2. "Izala Secretary Threatens Legal Action Against Ex-Kano". dailytrust.com. 10 September 2021. Retrieved 4 February 2024.
3. Ben Amara, Ramzi (c. 2007). "Sharia Debates in Africa". Retrieved 22 May 2014.
4. Paden, John N. (2008). Faith and Politics in Nigeria. US Institute of Peace Press. p. 28.
5. Hill, Jonathan N. C. (May 2010). SUFISM IN NORTHERN NIGERIA: FORCE FOR COUNTER-RADICALIZATION? (PDF). Strategic Studies Institute. p. 18.
6. Commins, David (2009). The Wahhabi Mission and Saudi Arabia. I.B.Tauris. p. 153. The League also sent missionaries to West Africa, where it funded schools, distributed religious literature and gave scholarships to attend Saudi religious universities. These efforts bore fruit in Nigeria's Muslim northern region with the creation of a movement (the Izala Society) dedicated to wiping out ritual innovations. Essential texts for members of the Izala Society are Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab's treatise of God's unity and commentaries by his grandsons.
7. emblem of Saudi Arabia and emblem of Izala (upper left corner)
8. Commins, David (2009). The Wahhabi Mission and Saudi Arabia. I.B.Tauris. p. 153. Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab ... argued that the criterion for one's standing as either a Muslim or an unbeliever was correct worship as an expression of belief in one God. ... any act or statement that indicates devotion to a being other than God is to associate another creature with God's power, and that is tantamount to idolatry (shirk). Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab included in the category of such acts popular religious practices that made holy men into intercessors with God. That was the core of the controversy between him and his adversaries ...
9. Sulaiman, Musa Abdullahi. "BenAmaraDiss" (PDF). The Izala Movement in Nigeria.
10. "Takaitaccen Tarihin Dr Muhammad Sani Umar | Dr. Muhammad Sani Umar Rijiyar Lemo". drmsanirijiyarlemo.net. Retrieved 2024-08-05.
11. Ibrahim, Yusha'u A. "Nigeria: Sheikh Bala Lau Now Izala National Chair". allafrica.com. Retrieved 4 February 2024.

External links

• Official website (not in English)