Abdul Alim Musa

Abdul Alim Musa is an African American Islamist preacher and the imam of the Al Masjid Mosque in Washington, D.C.Ryan Mauro, “As-Sabiqun / Masjid al- Islam,” The Clarion Project, April 6, 2013, http://www.clarionproject.org/analysis/sabiqun-masjid-al-islam. He is a convert to Sunni Islam but has been publicly supportive of Shiite Iran,Nan Rubin, “Campus Profile: Amir Abdul Malik Ali,” Political Research Associates, accessed May 29, 2015, http://www.politicalresearch.org/campus-profile-amir-abdul-malik-ali/#sthash.oeXcyUw3.dpbs. as well as Iranian-backed terror groups Hamas and Hezbollah.“Imam Musa on Hannity,” YouTube Video, 00:57, Posted by “mjohnson202,” October 3, 2007, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QdFyRsvnm0. Among other extremist beliefs, Alim Musa holds that Zionist American proxies blew up the World Trade Center, Palestinian suicide bombers are “heroes,” and that the U.S. government introduced heroin to U.S. cities in the 1960s to undermine the “blacks’ rebellion.”Dan Morse, “Case Against Ex-Guard Brings Scrutiny of D.C. Imam,” Washington Post, September 19, 2007, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/18/AR2007091802154.html. In 2009, the U.K. banned him from entering due to his “glorifying [of] terrorist violence in furtherance of his particular beliefs and seeking to provoke others to terrorist acts.”“Who is on UK 'least wanted' list?,” BBC News, May 5, 2009, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8033319.stm.

Born in Arkansas in 1945, Alim Musa grew up in Oakland, CA. He became involved in the drug trade and operated briefly out of Colombia where he was arrested on charges of heroin smuggling. He was incarcerated at the U.S. Federal Penitentiary in Leavenworth, Kansas where, according to Musa, he converted to “traditional orthodox Islam.”Dan Morse, “Case Against Ex-Guard Brings Scrutiny of D.C. Imam,” Washington Post, September 19, 2007, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/18/AR2007091802154.html.

Today, Alim Musa directs As-Sabiqun (“the Vanguard”), from the Al Masjid Mosque.Nan Rubin, “Campus Profile: Amir Abdul Malik Ali,” Political Research Associates, accessed May 29, 2015, http://www.politicalresearch.org/campus-profile-amir-abdul-malik-ali/#sthash.oeXcyUw3.dpbs. As-Sabiqun is an American Muslim organization whose “current mission, inside and outside of the U.S. is to struggle to neutralize the efforts of the top three enemies of our global Ummah, which together constitute the Triangle of Terror, [the U.S., Israel, and Saudi Arabia].”“Imam Musa’s Upcoming ‘Eid Message,” As-Sabiqun Blog, August 17, 2012, http://sabiqundc.blogspot.com/2012/08/eid-mubarak.html. As-Sabiqun advocates for a global Islamic state under sharia (Islamic law) and seeks to abolish all “man-made” governance.“Sabiqun and Anti-Semitism on Campus,” Anti-Defamation League, September 11, 2009, http://archive.adl.org/main_anti_israel/sabiqun_anti-semitismc089.html#.VWhmbM9Viko. It has reportedly endorsed the Palestinian terrorist organization Hamas.“Masjid Al Islam,” The Clarion Project, April 6, 2013, http://www.clarionproject.org/category/tags/masjid-al-islam-0#_ftn1.

As-Sabiqun reportedly seeks to become “one of the main suppliers of Islamic books, media, fragrances, and other products in the United States” and speak out “against the injustices perpetrated locally and globally by Zionists and imperialistic governments.” The organization reportedly operates branches in Los Angeles, San Diego, Sacramento, and Philadelphia, with its most active branches believed to be in Oakland, CA and Washington, D.C.Nan Rubin, “Campus Profile: Amir Abdul Malik Ali,” Political Research Associates, accessed May 29, 2015, http://www.politicalresearch.org/campus-profile-amir-abdul-malik-ali/#sthash.oeXcyUw3.dpbs; “Sabiqun and Anti-Semitism on Campus,” Anti-Defamation League, September 11, 2009, http://archive.adl.org/main_anti_israel/sabiqun_anti-semitismc089.html#.VWhmbM9Viko. According to his biography on the As-Sabiqun website, Alim Musa has been inspired by the writings of Abul Ala Maududi (an Indian Islamist revivalist and founder of Jamaat-e-Islami), Hassan al-Banna (founder of the Muslim Brotherhood), Sayyid Qutb (the Muslim Brotherhood ideologue and inspiration to numerous modern terror groups), and Ruhollah Khomeini (founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran).”“Imam Musa’s Upcoming ‘Eid Message,” As-Sabiqun Blog, August 17, 2012, http://sabiqundc.blogspot.com/2012/08/eid-mubarak.html.

Musa’s Al Masjid Mosque in D.C. houses a branch office of the Islamic Institute for Counter Zionist American Psychological Warfare,“Imam Musa’s Upcoming ‘Eid Message,” As-Sabiqun Blog, August 17, 2012, http://sabiqundc.blogspot.com/2012/08/eid-mubarak.html. an institute established to “monitor Zionist and Israeli networks, circles, and clubs which deceitfully infiltrate Muslim and Black groups.”“Sabiqun and Anti-Semitism on Campus,” Anti-Defamation League, September 11, 2009, http://archive.adl.org/main_anti_israel/sabiqun_anti-semitismc089.html#.VWhmbM9Viko. In addition, Alim Musa is reportedly a “senior” member of the Institute of Contemporary Islamic Thought (ICIT), reportedly a transnational pro-Iranian pro-Hezbollah think tank.“Sabiqun and Anti-Semitism on Campus,” Anti-Defamation League, September 11, 2009, http://archive.adl.org/main_anti_israel/sabiqun_anti-semitismc089.html#.VWhmbM9Viko.

Abdul Alim Musa has reportedly participated in events held by mainstream American Muslim organizations such as the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the Muslim American Society (MAS), the Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA), and the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA).“Sabiqun and Anti-Semitism on Campus,” Anti-Defamation League, September 11, 2009, http://archive.adl.org/main_anti_israel/sabiqun_anti-semitismc089.html#.VWhmbM9Viko. He is reportedly “particularly popular” with the Muslim Student Union at the University of California, Irvine.“Sabiqun and Anti-Semitism on Campus,” Anti-Defamation League, September 11, 2009, http://archive.adl.org/main_anti_israel/sabiqun_anti-semitismc089.html#.VWhmbM9Viko.

Also Known As

Extremist entity
As-Sabiqun
Type(s) of Organization:
Grassroots, religious, extremist
Ideologies and Affiliations:
Islamist, jihadist, pan-Islamist
Position(s):
Imam, preacher, propagandist

  • Rhetoric
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