Al Jihad

aka Egyptian Islamic Jihad, Egyptian al-Jihad, Islamic Jihad, Jihad Group, New Jihad

The Egyptian Islamic extremist group Al Jihad is said to maintain close ties with Osama bin Laden's Al Qaeda network. Although exact numbers are unknown, the organization is believed to have several hundred committed members. Active since the 1970s, the militant organization's goal is to overthrow the [Page 15]secular Egyptian government and replace it with an Islamic state. Al Jihad members assassinated Egyptian president Anwar Sadat.

Al Jihad developed into a powerful force in the 1980s, specializing in armed attacks against high-level members of the Egyptian government. During a military parade in November 1981, members disguised themselves as soldiers; after surrounding Sadat, they shot and killed him in front of Egyptian television cameras.

Al Jihad also claimed responsibility for the foiled assassination attempts on Interior Minister Hassan al-Alfi in August 1993 and Prime Minister Atef ...