Return of the Pharaoh. Zainab Al-Ghazali

Qutb was in hospital in the United States when he witnessed the jubilation in many quarters, at the death of Hasan al-Banna. He was told, when he inquired about the reason for this jubilation, that the greatest enemy of the West had been killed. From that moment Sayyid Qutb decided that he would join the Ikhwan as soon as he returned to Egypt. He realized that the colonial powers would not consider a person, and his organization, to be their archenemy unless that person was a strong and efficient patriot whose activities genuinely threatened the status quo and the colonialists’ interests in the area. After all, his vision of a group of people who would emerge out of the ruins of corruption in his native Egypt, and to whom he dedicated his book Social Justice in Islam, was not merely a dream but a living reality which he had hitherto failed to notice. Sayyid Qutb saw that the vehicle of change, which he often wished would emerge in his society, was already in motion.

      Once in Egypt, Sayyid Qutb rose quickly in the organizational hierarchy of the Ikhwan. He was elected, in 1952, as a member of the consultative council (Maktab al-Irshad) and head, an influential and important post, of the section for spreading da’wah (qism nashr al-Da’wah). Later, he was appointed editor of al-Ikhwan al-Muslimun journal.

      Sayyid Qutb was arrested on Nasir’s orders in January 1954 but was released in July 1955, for health reasons. He was again arrested in 1955 and sentenced to 15 years in prison, but was released in 1964 after the intervention of the Iraqi President ‘Abd Al-Salam ‘Arif. But his freedom lasted only a short time; he was again arrested in 1965 and was sentenced to death for an alleged conspiracy to assassinate Nasir and overthrow his regime. He was executed on 29th August 1966.

      As for Zainab al-Ghazali, she was one of the most prominent dignitaries of Egyptian society. Her pious husband was a rich and influential man, with acquaintances and friends from a wide range of political convictions and tendencies. Her own family was politically active and respected by large sections of the Egyptian establishment and opposition alike.

      She founded, while still very young, an Islamic women’s organization, Jama’at al-Sayyidat al-Muslimat, which was very active on the Egyptian social scene. It was this group that Hasan al-Banna wanted to merge with his women’s section, al-Akhawat al-Muslimat. Hasan al-Banna wanted Zainab al-Ghazali to be president of al-Akhawat al-Muslimat, and make her newly founded group part of the edifice of the Ikhwan. This, however, did not come about even though Zainab al-Ghazali swore allegiance to Hasan al-Banna shortly before he was assassinated.

      After the death of Hasan al-Banna, Hasan al-Hudaibi was chosen as supreme guide (al-Murshid al-’Am) of the Ikhwan. This choice was not welcomed by all the Ikhwan; some members of the secret organization, backed by others, stormed the general headquarters and occupied it for a while.

      However this dissent was contained and the people behind it were expelled from the group. Though the Ikhwan, at this stage, did have some very able leaders beside the Murshid, nevertheless, the gap which Hasan al-Banna left was clearly felt. Meanwhile the gulf between the Ikhwan and Nasir and the government of Free Army Officers was widening. For although the movement of Free Army Officers which overthrew King Faruq was initiated by the Ikhwan, the Ikhwan became disillusioned at the turn of events after 1952.

      When it became clear that Nasir was not going to bring about what the Ikhwan, as well as the nationalist and Islamic tendencies, wanted him to achieve, the Ikhwan began openly opposing him. Nasir suspended the publication of al-Ikhwan al-Muslimun. This was due to the Ikhwan’s opposition to the British-Egyptian treaty which Nasir signed in 1954. When Nasir did not succeed in getting his allies, among the secret organization which Hasan al-Banna founded, to take over the leadership of the Ikhwan, he saw this open opposition to his policies as a declaration of war against his regime.

      He arrested all the Ikhwan’s leaders, including the Murshid Hasan al-Hudaibi and Sayyid Qutb. After a mock trial, the greatest and most able of the Ikhwan leadership were sentenced to death. By this single act, the Ikhwan were left practically without effective leadership. Even Hasan al-Hudaibi would not have escaped execution had he not had a heart-attack while awaiting trial. But the greatest of all the losses which the Ikhwan suffered at this time was the execution of ‘Abd al-Qadir ‘Awdah and Shaikh Muhammad Farghali. These two had inherited almost all the qualities of their leader Hasan al-Banna. The loss of these two main figures when the group needed them most was a severe blow which threatened the very existence of the organization.

      For the first time since its inception the Ikhwan faced a real organizational and leadership crisis. The severe test which the Ikhwan was subjected to shook the resolve of many members. Conviction and firm loyalty to the group was not taken for granted as was the case during the lifetime of Hasan al-Banna and prior to the fitnah of 1954. Hasan al-Hudaibi, even after his release, was not able personally to firmly assume the task of heading his group, due to his poor health and old age. The drastic turn of events needed immediate and decisive action.

      At this juncture came the tripartite role played by Sayyid Qutb, Zainab al-Ghazali and ‘Abd al-Fattah Isma’il and the consequent events which led to the appalling cruelty they faced, along with other members of the Ikhwan, at the hands of Nasir and his agents.

      The leadership of the Ikhwan, at that time, decided that the restructuring and reorganization of the group was long overdue. The task of doing this fell, by necessity, on the shoulders of several people. Thus the combination of Sayyid Qutb, Zainab al-Ghazali and ‘Abd al-Fattah Isma’il was the best and most effective choice that could have been made by the Ikhwan leadership.

      ‘Abd al-Fattah Isma’il, a young, dedicated member of the Ikhwan, was considered to be one of the Ikhwan youth closest to Hasan al-Banna. But his organizational skills, as was to be proved later on, was perhaps behind his choice for this mission. Zainab al-Ghazali was a social figure who was loved and respected by all strata of society. Her influence within women’s sections of society and her family ties and acquaintances, besides her own attributes, opened the way to large and important sections of society. The value of this lady was instantly recognized by ‘Abd al-Fattah Isma’il. As for Sayyid Qutb, he was a great intellectual and theoretician. His intellectual and visionary grandeur were endearing aspects which the Ikhwan needed desperately. These three persons with their different abilities, importance and tasks, were going to restore to the Ikhwan group its past glory and carry out the goals which Hasan al-Banna had set his group to achieve: ‘Abd al-Fattah Isma’il and Zainab al-Ghazali from outside and Sayyid Qutb from inside prison, with the guidance and supervision of the supreme guide Hasan al-Hudaibi.

      With the passing years, the Ikhwan’s strength and effectiveness increased. The growing influence which the thought of the Ikhwan exercised on people, especially the youth, attracted enormous attention. Huge numbers of the Egyptian people were recruited and Islamically trained. Study circles, meetings, camps and gatherings were run and directed by the Ikhwan throughout the country. Sayyid Qutb’s writings especially were read by millions of people both inside and outside Egypt.

      The Ikhwan, which Nasir thought was dead was emerging, once again, as the biggest political force in Egyptian society. Some official reports indicated that Sayyid Qutb, especially after his release from prison in 1964, was preparing a core of selected Ikhwan members to form a ‘secret military organization’ within the Ikhwan. This was enough for Nasir to arrest all the Ikhwan members, including Sayyid Qutb, Zainab al-Ghazali and ‘Abd al-Fattah Isma’il, and inflict on them the most dreadful cruelty.

      These are, in brief, the circumstances which surrounded and explain the political and social context which led to the events related by Zainab al-Ghazali in Return of the Pharaoh.

      Zainab al-Ghazali is today a renowned Muslim da’iyah respected by all Muslim activists. She regularly gives talks and lectures in Egypt and all over the world. She also contributes to many Islamic journals and magazines on Islamic and women’s issues.

      The hardship and severe tests which Zainab al-Ghazali was subjected to, her firmness and bravery in facing the enemies of Islam, her deep iman