Ali Amin al-Rashidi | |
|---|---|
| Nicknames | Ubaidah al-Banshiri, Adel Habib, Karim, Jalal |
| Born | May 1950 |
| Died | May 21, 1996 (aged 46) |
| Allegiance |  Maktab al-Khidamatal-Qaeda |
| Years of service | 1983-1996 |
| Rank | Military Commander |
| Battles / wars | |
Abu Ubaidah al-Banshiri (Arabic:أبو عبيدة البنشيري; May 1950 – 21 May 1996) was thenom de guerre[1] ofAli Amin al-Rashidi, was a founding member ofal-Qaeda and served as the groups first military commander. He was known within the group as the "most capable and popular leaders".[2][3][4][5]
He was the head of al-Qaeda's African presence, overseeing both funding and military operations in the continent, and second in command of the whole organization, belowOsama bin Laden.
Al-Rashidi was born in May 1950 inCairo, and served in thenational police force onEgypt. His future brother-in-law was a member of al-Jihad, a precursor toEgyptian Islamic Jihad, and had participated in theassassination of Egyptian President Anwar El Sadat. In the aftermath, Egypt began a crackdown on Islamic extremism and al-Rashidi was briefly arrested for allegedly being part of al-Jihad and was fired from his position in the police. In 1983 he married Hafsah Sa’d Rashwan, the sister ofMuhammad Abd al-Salam Faraj wife. Shortly after their marriage, the couple moved toJeddah, Saudi Arabia, living in a home owned by Osama bin Laden. He then travelled toPeshawar, Pakistan to train with theArab Mujahedeen fighting against the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan.[6]
It is as if 100 years were added to my life when I came to Afghanistan
— Abu Ubaidah al-Banshiri[7]
While there he metAyman al-Zawahiri, head of Egyptian Islamic Jihad, who introduced al-Rashidi toOsama bin Laden, then serving as the chief financer ofMaktab al-Khidamat, who was so favorably impressed that he placed him in charge of the training camps for the Afghan Arabs. He also fostered cooperation between the Arab and Afghan Mujahedeen, and was a compatriot ofAhmed Shah Massoud.[8][9] Together with bin Laden, al-Rashidi lead around 50 Arab volunteers against a Soviet siege in thePaktia province. During theBattle of Jaji, forces under the command of bin Laden and al-Rashidi held out for a week to protect a mujahedeen supply route. Al-Rashidi was wounded after being shot in the leg, and his forces eventually retreated after being overrun by Soviet forces, but the battle was seen as a great victory by bin Laden and his forces, with al-Rashidi being celebrated as a war hero as well.[10][6]
While still in Afghanistan, in August 1988, he attended a meeting with bin Laden,Mamdouh Mahmud Salim, andWa'el Julaidan. The men were disappointed with Makteb al-Khidamat and discussed qualities of a possible new organization to replace it.[11] In late 1989, al-Qaeda welcomed in its first recruits at a training camp in the Paktia province of Afghanistan that Al-Rashidi managed. Osama bin Laden,Abu Ayoub al-Iraqi,Jamal al-Fadl, and al-Rashidis second in command,Mohammed Atef, were present as well for a meeting in which they discussed al-Qaeda taking jihad outside of Afghanistan.[6]
In 1990, al-Qaeda leadership had decided to move their operation to Sudan, seeking to capitalize on the ascent of theNational Islamic Front to power in the country after the1989 coup. The group first travelled from Pakistan in 1992 to Yemen for 10 months before settling inOmdurman, Sudan. During this time, al-Rashidi was placed in charge of the al-Qaeda cell in Yemen. He was also made field commander for all operations in theHorn of Africa.[6]
Along with his role as military leader, al-Rashidi also established a number of businesses and charities that acted as fronts for al-Qaeda. A fishing business inMombasa, Kenya was established in 1994, and a business was set up inNairobi importing automobiles from theUnited Arab Emirates. From 1993 until 1997, al-Rashidi andWadih el-Hage, bin Ladens secretary who was serving as al-Qaeda's senior facilitator in Kenya, established a number of gem, gold, and tanzanite companies in Kenya. The two men were also associated with theNGO'sMercy International Relief Agency andHelp Africa People.[1][6][12]
At some point al-Banshiri acquired eitherDutch citizenship[5] or forged Dutch papers.[1] Prior to 1996, al-Rashidi, Mohammed Atef and Yaseen al-Iraqi aidedEnaam Arnaout in purchasingAK-47s and mortar rounds from a Pashtun tribesman named Hajjji Ayoub, and they were subsequently delivered in large trucks to the Jawr and Jihad Wahl training camps.[13]
In spring 1993, al-Rashidi held a meeting with Osama bin Laden during which both agreed that al-Qaeda would target American forces present in Somalia forOperation Gothic Serpent. Following a recon mission into the country by Mohammed Atef, al-Rashidi ordered a portion of the Sudanese cell of al-Qaeda to go to Somalia and offer weapons, training and assistance to any Somalian forces opposed to the UN presence. He also strongly advocated for theeventual attacks on the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.[6]
On 21 May 1996 Ali Amin al-Rashidi drowned inLake Victoria after the ferry he was travelling on sank. When the news broke that the ferryMV Bukoba had sunk, al-Qaeda sentFazul Abdullah Mohammed and Wadih el-Hage to the scene to verify that al-Banshiri had drowned, and had not been murdered.[14] A source has claimed that al-Rashidi was attempting to obtain material for adirty bomb when he drowned and when the brother of Ayman al Zawahiri had informed al-Rashidis wife of his death, he told her that he was making preparations for an attack when he drowned.[6]
Al-Rashidi was succeeded as al-Qaeda's military commander byMohammed Atef, who had been his protegee. Al-Banshiri's senior role in East Africa was taken over, at least in part, byAbdullah Ahmed Abdullah.[1]
A poem entitled "Tears in the Eyes of Time" was written about al-Banshiri, commemorating him among the greatest of the "fallen mujahideen". Al-Zawahiri recited the poem in his January 2006 internet broadcast.[15]
