Parallel to the male organization of the Ikhwan, Hasan al-Banna founded a female section (al-Akhawat al-Muslimat), to play its role among the ladies. In order to achieve this task the Akhawat founded the ‘Girls’ House for Islamic Education’ (Dar al-Tarbiyyah al-Islamiyyah li’l-fatat) whose role among ladies and girls was similar to that of the male section in terms of comprehensiveness and depth.
Hasan al-Banna could not ignore what was happening on the political front. Had he ignored it, he would have failed to rise to the wholeness and compass which he set his group to achieve. Had he left politics aside, his group would have had enhanced the claim, already widespread at that time among the intellectuals of Egyptian society, that Islam is a mere personal relationship between man and God, and hence, had nothing to do with political legitimacy.
Soon the Ikhwan group made its political voice heard by friend and foe alike. It stood firmly, in the early thirties against the missionary activities which exploited the ignorance, misery and vulnerability of ordinary people and the Ikhwan made sure that these activities did not succeed. They also opposed strongly the 1936 Anglo-Egyptian treaty which the Wafdist government signed on behalf of Egypt, for they believed it to be a treaty which strengthened Britain’s grip on Egypt.
Hasan al-Banna mobilized all his group’s strength and potential to helping the Palestinian people in their 1936 revolution against the British and the Zionists. The voice of the Ikhwan was a loud cry against the corruption of the establishment which ruled Egypt at that time. Thus, the Ikhwan opposed colonialist and capitalist projects which were implemented in the area through the political system. In this context the Ikhwan mobilized the masses to march against the Sidqi-Bevin treaty, in 1946, leading to its failure. This was but a small reaction which was part of an overall plan to get rid of all aspects of colonialism and dependency.
The colonial powers were well aware of the danger posed by the Ikhwan, and Hasan al-Banna in particular, to their interests in the region and the threat which they would face should the Ikhwan ever get into power. Thus, when Hasan al-Banna presented himself for parliamentary election, the Wafdist Prime Minister, Mustafa al-Nahhas asked him to withdraw his candidature because of threats he had received from the British ambassador in Cairo. Meanwhile the Ikhwan’s help for the Palestinian cause did not stop with the end of the 1936 revolution. Hasan al-Banna sent people from his group to train the Palestinians and initiated huge fund-raising schemes for this cause. In the 1948 Arab-Zionist War, the Ikhwan sent to the war-front the best of their youth to fight against the Zionists.
Involved as they were in Egyptian affairs, the Ikhwan were also keen to expand their thought and vision to other parts of the Muslim world. Ikhwan branches, with a close, organizational affiliation with the mother-organization in Egypt, were founded in Syria, Jordan, and later on, in almost all Arab countries. The Ikhwan were even involved in the 1948 Yemenite revolution which attempted to enthrone Qadi Abdullah Ibn Ahmad al-Wazir as Imam of Yemen after the death of Imam Yahya.
Some of the leaders of the Algerian association of Muslim scholars, such as al-Fudail al-Warthilani, had strong links with the Ikhwan who were helping them to rid the country of the French colonialists.
Hasan al-Banna’s political plans were not simplistic and aimed only at making partisan noises or party political gains. He did not aim, in the long run, at participating in the political game which the dying monarchy, and the colonialist powers, were playing in Egypt. Clearly, he was planning to change Egypt’s political system, and hence, overthrow the monarchy, as a first step towards reviving a great Muslim Caliphate.
In order to achieve this aim, he formed an elite core of soldiers, and some civilians, which became known as al-Jihaz al-Sirri (the secret organ).
The activities of this secret Ikhwan organization among the Egyptian army culminated in the formation of al-Dubbat al-Ahrar (the Free Army Officers). This organization included some Egyptian army elite among whom was Jamal ‘Abd al-Nasir. Nasir and many of his fellow-officers who participated, later on, in the overthrow of King Faruq did, in fact, belong to the Ikhwan and swore allegiance to Hasan al-Banna and the head of the secret organization, Mahmud Labib, whom Hasan al-Banna appointed. Hasan al-Banna did not, however, live to see King Faruq overthrown nor the subsequent turn of events which followed.
After the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, the colonialist powers were convinced that they had to act drastically against the Ikhwan and their leader. Thus, all the Ikhwan members who participated in the war against the Zionists were imprisoned, and most of the Ikhwan members remaining in Egypt were also arrested. But Hasan al-Banna was left free, in order to facilitate his assassination. The great powers were growing ever more concerned about their interests in the region so, because of the Ikhwan’s activities, the liquidation of its leader and severe measures against the group became inevitable. Hasan al-Banna was assassinated on 12th February 1949.
The key role that Zainab al-Ghazali and Sayyid Qutb played in the history of the Ikhwan began to take shape after the death of Hasan al-Banna.
Sayyid Qutb was a renown poet, writer and literary critic. His name was, up to the late thirties, associated with the great writer Abbas Mahmud al-Aqqad. But this association began to fade when Sayyid Qutb’s Islamic commitment grew stronger. Before that, however, Sayyid Qutb was a secular writer.
The Islamic awakening in Sayyid Qutb happened quite accidentally. He was writing some books about the linguistic merits of the Qur’an, and for this he studied closely the sacred text of the Qur’an. During the course of this study, Sayyid Qutb strongly and genuinely came to believe that he had found all the answers to the questions which tormented his agitated soul. A series of Islamic books ensued, the most famous and influential being Social Justice in Islam (al-’Adala al-Ijtima’iyyah fi’l-Islam). After this period Sayyid Qutb did not write any literary pieces; all his subsequent publications were either political or Islamic.
But if Sayyid Qutb’s relations with the Islamic cause began rather late, his political activity started quite early. His father was a member of the Nationalist Party of Mustafa Kamil. He, himself, was a member of al-Wafd Party, partly because of an uncle’s close connection with this party and partly because of al-Aqqad’s influence, that is until he resigned in the mid-forties because of his disenchantment with the party.
His incisive and uncompromising articles against the British and the monarchy brought him numerous enemies but also the admiration of the Egyptian people and the respect and veneration of the nationalist and Islamic tendencies. He was a hero in the eyes of many people. The political scene in Egypt during the first half of this century was dominated by corrupt people, apart from a few personalities and the Ikhwan. Therefore, the honesty, bravery and political struggle of this great literary figure, Sayyid Qutb, against corruption and foreign dependency was an inspiration and sign of hope for everyone. Sayyid Qutb showed in his attacks against the monarchy and the British that he did not fear death or the loss of his social privileges.
As time passed, the tone of Sayyid Qutb’s attacks on the monarchy and the British grew stronger. As a way of silencing his angry voice of discontent, he was sent for two years (1948-50) to the USA to study the educational methodologies of that country.
Up to this time, Sayyid Qutb did not have any formal or informal connections with the Ikhwan. Although he was aware of their activities and the efforts made by Hasan al-Banna, it seems that he was not convinced, until his time spent in the United States, that the Ikhwan were the effective tool by which Egyptian