Ramadan Abdullah Mohammad Shallah
Encyclopedia
Ramadan Shallah is a Palestinian
academic
and one of the founders of Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ). He became the Secretary-General of PIJ when Fathi Shaqaqi
was killed in 1995. Shallah is sometimes referred to as Abdullah Ramadan Shallah (
عبد الله رمضان شلح) and other variations.
Shallah has been under embargo by the Office of Foreign Assets Control
of the US Treasury Department
since 27 November 1995. He is under indictment in the United States on 53 criminal counts. On 24 February 2006 Shallah and fellow PIJ member Abd Al Aziz Awda
were added to the FBI
's list of Most Wanted Terrorists
. Both Shallah and Awda, along with most members of the politburos of PIJ and Hamas
, are currently sheltered by Syria
.
, also called Gaza Sejaiya district, a neighborhood in eastern Gaza City. At the time, the Gaza Strip
was under Egyptian control
. Shallah was born into the middle of that occupation, in 1958. Egypt, since 1949, had recognized an "All-Palestine Government." But in 1959, a year after Shallah's birth, the president of Egypt, Gamal Abdul Nasser, annulled the All-Palestine government by decree. In 1967, Gaza came under Israeli control as a result of the Six Day War.
in Banking and Economics from the University of Durham in England. Professor Sami Al-Arian
, who later pleaded guilty to helping PIJ and was sentenced to 57 months in prison, helped bring him to Al-Arian's university in Tampa where he then taught as an adjunct professor at the University of South Florida
, and where Al-Arian appointed him the head of WISE. He left in 1995 to head the resistance movement. Al-Arian said he was shocked to learn Shallah was "anything other than a scholar."
in 1995. Shallah was listed as a "Specially Designated Terrorist
" under United States law on November 27, 1995.
Along with fellow PIJ member Abd Al Aziz Awda, Shallah was indicted in a 53 count indictment in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida
, Tampa, Florida
, on Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act
(RICO) charges of alleged involvement in racketeering activities for the designated international terrorist organization known as Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Shallah is wanted for conspiracy to conduct the affairs of the PIJ through a pattern of racketeering activities such as bombings, murders, extortions, and money laundering.
For that indictment, Shallah then became one of six alleged and indicted terrorist fugitives among the second and most recent group of indicted fugitives to be added to the United States FBI Most Wanted Terrorists
list on February 24, 2006, along with Abd Al Aziz Awda.
Palestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
academic
Academia
Academia is the community of students and scholars engaged in higher education and research.-Etymology:The word comes from the akademeia in ancient Greece. Outside the city walls of Athens, the gymnasium was made famous by Plato as a center of learning...
and one of the founders of Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ). He became the Secretary-General of PIJ when Fathi Shaqaqi
Fathi Shaqaqi
Fathi Shaqaqi , alternatively spelled Fathi Shqaqi or Fathi Shiqaqi , was the Palestinian who founded and led the Palestinian Islamic Jihad organisation and was the initiator of suicide bombings....
was killed in 1995. Shallah is sometimes referred to as Abdullah Ramadan Shallah (
عبد الله رمضان شلح) and other variations.
Shallah has been under embargo by the Office of Foreign Assets Control
Office of Foreign Assets Control
The Office of Foreign Assets Control is an agency of the United States Department of the Treasury under the auspices of the Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence. OFAC administers and enforces economic and trade sanctions based on U.S...
of the US Treasury Department
United States Department of the Treasury
The Department of the Treasury is an executive department and the treasury of the United States federal government. It was established by an Act of Congress in 1789 to manage government revenue...
since 27 November 1995. He is under indictment in the United States on 53 criminal counts. On 24 February 2006 Shallah and fellow PIJ member Abd Al Aziz Awda
Abd Al Aziz Awda
Abd Al Aziz Awda, also known as Sheik Odeh has Palestinian citizenship and is one of the founders of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, deemed by the United States federal government to be a designated international terrorist organization.Awda was listed as a "Specially Designated Terrorist" under...
were added to the FBI
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
's list of Most Wanted Terrorists
FBI Most Wanted Terrorists
The Federal Bureau of Investigation's Most Wanted Terrorists is a list of fugitives who have been indicted by sitting Federal grand juries in the United States district courts, for alleged crimes of terrorism. The initial list was formed in late 2001 in the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 attacks...
. Both Shallah and Awda, along with most members of the politburos of PIJ and Hamas
Hamas
Hamas is the Palestinian Sunni Islamic or Islamist political party that governs the Gaza Strip. Hamas also has a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades...
, are currently sheltered by Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
.
Shuja'iyya, Gaza City, birthplace
Shallah was born as 'Ramadan Abdullah Mohammad Shallah' on 1 February 1958 in Shuja'iyyaShuja'iyya
Shuja'iyya is a district of the Palestinian city of Gaza east of the city center, situated on a hill, located across the main Salah ad-Din Road that runs north-south throughout the Gaza Strip. It boasts Gaza's largest market which specializes mostly in clothes and household goods. Midan Shuja'iyya...
, also called Gaza Sejaiya district, a neighborhood in eastern Gaza City. At the time, the Gaza Strip
Gaza Strip
thumb|Gaza city skylineThe Gaza Strip lies on the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Strip borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the south, east and north. It is about long, and between 6 and 12 kilometres wide, with a total area of...
was under Egyptian control
Occupation of the Gaza Strip by Egypt
The administration of the Gaza Strip by Egypt occurred between 1948 and October 1956, and again from March 1957 to June 1967. Egypt did not annex the Gaza Strip but left it under Egyptian military rule as a temporary arrangement pending the resolution of the Palestine Question.-Background:After...
. Shallah was born into the middle of that occupation, in 1958. Egypt, since 1949, had recognized an "All-Palestine Government." But in 1959, a year after Shallah's birth, the president of Egypt, Gamal Abdul Nasser, annulled the All-Palestine government by decree. In 1967, Gaza came under Israeli control as a result of the Six Day War.
University career
Shallah earned a Ph.D.Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in Banking and Economics from the University of Durham in England. Professor Sami Al-Arian
Sami Al-Arian
Dr. Sami Amin Al-Arian , is a former resident of Temple Terrace, Florida, now living in Northern Virginia, who is a Muslim activist, and former University of South Florida professor of computer engineering...
, who later pleaded guilty to helping PIJ and was sentenced to 57 months in prison, helped bring him to Al-Arian's university in Tampa where he then taught as an adjunct professor at the University of South Florida
University of South Florida
The University of South Florida, also known as USF, is a member institution of the State University System of Florida, one of the state's three flagship universities for public research, and is located in Tampa, Florida, USA...
, and where Al-Arian appointed him the head of WISE. He left in 1995 to head the resistance movement. Al-Arian said he was shocked to learn Shallah was "anything other than a scholar."
Palestinian Islamic Jihad activity
Shallah took control as secretary-general of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) after the assassination of the former leader, Fathi Shiqaqi in MaltaMalta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
in 1995. Shallah was listed as a "Specially Designated Terrorist
Specially Designated Terrorist
A Specially Designated Terrorist is any person who is determined by the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury to be a specially designated terrorist under notices or regulations issued by the Office of Foreign Assets Control ....
" under United States law on November 27, 1995.
Along with fellow PIJ member Abd Al Aziz Awda, Shallah was indicted in a 53 count indictment in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida
United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida
The United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida serves the residents of thirty-five counties from eight courthouses....
, Tampa, Florida
Tampa, Florida
Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....
, on Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act
Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act
The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, commonly referred to as the RICO Act or simply RICO, is a United States federal law that provides for extended criminal penalties and a civil cause of action for acts performed as part of an ongoing criminal organization...
(RICO) charges of alleged involvement in racketeering activities for the designated international terrorist organization known as Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Shallah is wanted for conspiracy to conduct the affairs of the PIJ through a pattern of racketeering activities such as bombings, murders, extortions, and money laundering.
For that indictment, Shallah then became one of six alleged and indicted terrorist fugitives among the second and most recent group of indicted fugitives to be added to the United States FBI Most Wanted Terrorists
FBI Most Wanted Terrorists
The Federal Bureau of Investigation's Most Wanted Terrorists is a list of fugitives who have been indicted by sitting Federal grand juries in the United States district courts, for alleged crimes of terrorism. The initial list was formed in late 2001 in the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 attacks...
list on February 24, 2006, along with Abd Al Aziz Awda.
External links
- FBI's Most Wanted Terrorists wanted poster of Shallah
- Rewards for Justice wanted poster of Shallah from US State Dept., similar to the preceding
- 2009 interview with Shallah by Scott AtranScott AtranScott Atran is an American and French anthropologist.-Education and early career:Atran was born in New York City in 1952 and he received his PhD in anthropology from Columbia University. While a student at Columbia, he became assistant to anthropologist Margaret Mead at the American Museum of...
and Robert AxelrodRobert AxelrodRobert M. Axelrod is an American political scientist. He is Professor of Political Science and Public Policy at the University of Michigan where he has been since 1974. He is best known for his interdisciplinary work on the evolution of cooperation, which has been cited in numerous articles...