Ibrahim Mousawi
Encyclopedia
Ibrahim Mousawi is a Lebanese
journalist
and Hezbollah media relations officer.
He was born in 1965 to a family from Baalbek
and grew up in the southern suburbs of Beirut
.
Mousawi is shiite.
He has two BAs in Journalism and English literature
from the Lebanese University
and has worked as a head master at secondary school
s.
Mousawi is editor of the weekly Hezbollah newspaper al-Intiqad (Criticism) in Beirut.
He has been quoted as a Hezbollah spokesman
since at least 1998.
He joined the Hezbollah TV station Al Manar (the beacon), which practices partisan journalism and does not include Israeli officials in its broadcasts.
According to Mousawi because "It [Israel] is an enemy state," and "why would you put spokesmen for an enemy state on the air?"
He hosted a political talk show and worked as editor-in-chief of foreign news at Al Manar.
In an article for the Daily Star
in 2002, Mousawi explained the religious basis for suicide attack
s in a fatwa of Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah. Jeffrey Goldberg
wrote in the New Yorker
magazine that Mousawi had confided to him that "Jews are a lesion on the forehead of history." When Al-Manar was banned from French satellite TV for airing a 29-part Ramadan
special Ash-Shatat
(Diaspora) during October–November 2003, which featured the "Blood libel against Jews" and quoted extensively from the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, Mousawi said the ban resulted from "political pressure by the Jewish lobby".
He earned his MA in Political Science from the American University of Beirut
(AUB) in 2003.
Mousawi rose to prominence during the 2006 Lebanon War as a spokesman for Hezbollah. He said that "pain is the only language that the enemy understands".
Following the cessation of hostilities, Mousawi was invited to speak to European audiences in Ireland, Germany and the UK, where he was announced as a Hezbollah spokesman on posters of the Stop the War Coalition
.
Mousawi received a PhD in Political Islam from Birmingham University in 2007.
The title of his dissertation was "Compatibility between Islam and democracy; Shiism and democracy under Wilayat Al-Faqih, Iran as a case study". He coauthored an article on "Hizbullah's Jihad Concept" and lectures on political science at AUB.
In October 2007, Mousawi was refused entry to Ireland on security grounds following a recommendation from the Gardai and he is also barred from entering the United States because of his links with Hezbollah.
The British Conservative Party tried to have Mousawi banned from Britain like Yusuf al-Qaradawi
and Moshe Feiglin
in February 2008, but failed.
Mousawi's visit has been condemned by Leader David Cameron in the House of Commons and by shadow Defence Minister Baroness Neville-Jones, a former chairwoman of the Joint Intelligence Committee.
In February 2009, Hezbollah publicly appointed Mousawi as its new media relations officer.
When Mousawi was announced for a UK visit in March 2009, campaigners from the Centre for Social Cohesion
pledged to seek an arrest warrant for him.
He was banned from the UK in March 2009.
Lebanese people
The Lebanese people are a nation and ethnic group of Levantine people originating in what is today the country of Lebanon, including those who had inhabited Mount Lebanon prior to the creation of the modern Lebanese state....
journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and Hezbollah media relations officer.
He was born in 1965 to a family from Baalbek
Baalbek
Baalbek is a town in the Beqaa Valley of Lebanon, altitude , situated east of the Litani River. It is famous for its exquisitely detailed yet monumentally scaled temple ruins of the Roman period, when Baalbek, then known as Heliopolis, was one of the largest sanctuaries in the Empire...
and grew up in the southern suburbs of Beirut
Beirut
Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...
.
Mousawi is shiite.
He has two BAs in Journalism and English literature
English literature
English literature is the literature written in the English language, including literature composed in English by writers not necessarily from England; for example, Robert Burns was Scottish, James Joyce was Irish, Joseph Conrad was Polish, Dylan Thomas was Welsh, Edgar Allan Poe was American, J....
from the Lebanese University
Lebanese University
The Lebanese University is the only public institution for higher learning in Lebanon. Founded in 1951, it has 17 faculties as of 2006 and serves various cultural, religious, and social groups of students and teachers....
and has worked as a head master at secondary school
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
s.
Mousawi is editor of the weekly Hezbollah newspaper al-Intiqad (Criticism) in Beirut.
He has been quoted as a Hezbollah spokesman
Spokesman
A spokesperson or spokesman or spokeswoman is someone engaged or elected to speak on behalf of others.In the present media-sensitive world, many organizations are increasingly likely to employ professionals who have received formal training in journalism, communications, public relations and...
since at least 1998.
He joined the Hezbollah TV station Al Manar (the beacon), which practices partisan journalism and does not include Israeli officials in its broadcasts.
According to Mousawi because "It [Israel] is an enemy state," and "why would you put spokesmen for an enemy state on the air?"
He hosted a political talk show and worked as editor-in-chief of foreign news at Al Manar.
In an article for the Daily Star
Daily Star (Lebanon)
The Daily Star is a pan-Middle East English language newspaper edited in Beirut. It was founded in 1952 by Kamel Mrowa, the publisher of the Arabic daily Al-Hayat to serve the growing number of expatriates brought by the oil industry...
in 2002, Mousawi explained the religious basis for suicide attack
Suicide attack
A suicide attack is a type of attack in which the attacker expects or intends to die in the process.- Historical :...
s in a fatwa of Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah. Jeffrey Goldberg
Jeffrey Goldberg
Jeffrey Mark Goldberg is an American journalist. He is an author and a staff writer for The Atlantic, having previously worked for The New Yorker. Goldberg writes principally on foreign affairs, with a focus on the Middle East and Africa...
wrote in the New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
magazine that Mousawi had confided to him that "Jews are a lesion on the forehead of history." When Al-Manar was banned from French satellite TV for airing a 29-part Ramadan
Ramadan
Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, which lasts 29 or 30 days. It is the Islamic month of fasting, in which participating Muslims refrain from eating, drinking, smoking and sex during daylight hours and is intended to teach Muslims about patience, spirituality, humility and...
special Ash-Shatat
Ash-Shatat
Ash-Shatat is a 29-part Syrian television series produced in 2003 by a private Syrian film company, Linn, at a cost of $5.1m. Based in part on The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, the series reflects anti-Semitic stereotypes and themes...
(Diaspora) during October–November 2003, which featured the "Blood libel against Jews" and quoted extensively from the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, Mousawi said the ban resulted from "political pressure by the Jewish lobby".
He earned his MA in Political Science from the American University of Beirut
American University of Beirut
The American University of Beirut is a private, independent university in Beirut, Lebanon. It was founded as the Syrian Protestant College by American missionaries in 1866...
(AUB) in 2003.
Mousawi rose to prominence during the 2006 Lebanon War as a spokesman for Hezbollah. He said that "pain is the only language that the enemy understands".
Following the cessation of hostilities, Mousawi was invited to speak to European audiences in Ireland, Germany and the UK, where he was announced as a Hezbollah spokesman on posters of the Stop the War Coalition
Stop the War Coalition
The Stop the War Coalition is a United Kingdom group set up on 21 September 2001 that campaigns against what it believes are unjust wars....
.
Mousawi received a PhD in Political Islam from Birmingham University in 2007.
The title of his dissertation was "Compatibility between Islam and democracy; Shiism and democracy under Wilayat Al-Faqih, Iran as a case study". He coauthored an article on "Hizbullah's Jihad Concept" and lectures on political science at AUB.
In October 2007, Mousawi was refused entry to Ireland on security grounds following a recommendation from the Gardai and he is also barred from entering the United States because of his links with Hezbollah.
The British Conservative Party tried to have Mousawi banned from Britain like Yusuf al-Qaradawi
Yusuf al-Qaradawi
Yusuf al-Qaradawi is a controversial Egyptian Islamic theologian. He is best known for his programme, ash-Shariah wal-Hayat , broadcast on Al Jazeera, which has an estimated audience of 60 million worldwide...
and Moshe Feiglin
Moshe Feiglin
Moshe Zalman Feiglin is an Israeli politician, head of the Manhigut Yehudit faction of the Likud party in Israel...
in February 2008, but failed.
Mousawi's visit has been condemned by Leader David Cameron in the House of Commons and by shadow Defence Minister Baroness Neville-Jones, a former chairwoman of the Joint Intelligence Committee.
In February 2009, Hezbollah publicly appointed Mousawi as its new media relations officer.
When Mousawi was announced for a UK visit in March 2009, campaigners from the Centre for Social Cohesion
Centre for Social Cohesion
The Centre for Social Cohesion is a British think tank headquartered in London and founded in 2007.-Foundation and constitution:CSC was established with funding of circa £275,000 from Civitas. The organisation is constituted as a company limited by guarantee, and was incorporated and registered...
pledged to seek an arrest warrant for him.
He was banned from the UK in March 2009.