Hezbollah and al-Jamaa al-Islamiya: From brothers in arms to political allies?

In southern Lebanon, Hezbollah is not alone against Israel. Palestinian factions and the al-Jamaa al-Islamiya party join them on the front.

Since the start of the Oct. 7 al-Aqsa Flood Operation, the small Lebanese Sunni party affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood (similar to the Palestinian Hamas movement) revived its armed wing, the al-Fajr forces, to take part in the fighting alongside the Iran-aligned party.

At a time when Hezbollah is looking for domestic support for its battle against Israel in support of Hamas, this interfaith alignment comes at a critical moment. However, it is not guaranteed to extend Hezbollah’s influence beyond the war, particularly in the Sunni arena, which has been without clear leadership since former Prime Minister Saad Hariri withdrew from politics in early 2022.

‘If I had a missile, I would fire it right away’

“Al-Jamaa al-Islamiya’s participation in the fighting is beneficial to both Hezbollah and the party itself,” said political scientist Karim Mufti. “This is an opportunity for Hassan Nasrallah’s party to take the concept of ‘resistance’ out of the Shiite hands.”

This makes Hezbollah’s access to the Sunni villages in the border strip, from where it carries out operations, smoother.

“This is a chance for the [Muslim] Brotherhood-affiliated movement to assert itself politically by getting back into the game of war against Israel,” he added.

This move comes when the Sunni political scene is more competitive, and various players are trying to secure its leadership. al-Jamaa al-Islamiya, one of the oldest and best-structured Sunni parties, is among the contenders.

By proving it can strike Israel, the movement could gain popularity among the Sunni public opinion, which is thirsty for revenge after decades of setbacks in the region.

“If I had a missile, I would fire it right away. Israel is an enemy for Sunnis and Shiites alike… and certainly for all Arabs,” said a Sunni former Member of Parliament in the anti-Hezbollah camp.

A pro-Palestine demonstration, held last week in downtown Beirut, brought together thousands of people under the Brotherhood banner. However, “this doesn’t change the political alignments that existed before the war,” said the source.

This convergence on the ground does not mean that the two brothers-in-arms will become political allies, because their relations have always been rocky.

Since the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafic Hariri in 2005, and the ensuing increased political divide, the majority of the Sunni public opinion sided with the anti-Syria (March 14) camp, including al-Jamaa al-Islamiya.

“The Sunni-Shiite divide after 2005, not to mention Hezbollah’s intervention in the Syrian civil war alongside the Bashar al-Assad regime [the Muslim Brotherhood’s sworn enemy], has undermined the Hezbollah and al-Jamaa al-Islamiya's relations over the past decade,” said Raphaël Lefèvre, an expert on Islamist movements in Lebanon and researcher at Bristol University. “Mutual animosity will not disappear overnight, especially among voters,” he added.

In October 2019, al-Jamaa al-Islamiya sided with the popular uprising that Hezbollah was against, and its members partook massively in the demonstrations, especially in Saida. However, despite this positioning, the Islamist group did not escalate the confrontation.

In May 2008, when Hezbollah invaded Beirut’s Sunni district to push the cabinet to reverse its security-related decisions, the Brotherhood-affiliated party did not intervene to back up the defenses of the Hariri Future Movement, which were quickly crushed by Hezbollah and Amal fighters.

Since the start of the presidential election period in Sept. 2022, al-Jamaa al-Islamiya has sided with the “gray” camp, between the opposition and pro-Hezbollah camps.

‘We do not intent to join any axis’

Al-Jamaa al-Islamiyya’s “non-aligned” position cannot be dissociated from two important factors.

The first is historical, dating back to 1979, when the Iranian revolution led to the replacement of the secular Pahlavi monarchy with an Islamic Republic. It is a source of inspiration for Islamist movements, including both Sunni and Shiite parties.

“Some leaders within the al-Jamaa [al-Islamiyya] were seduced by the Islamic Revolution, which also inspired Hezbollah,” said Lefèvre.

The two Islamist-conservative parties fought together against the Israeli occupation in the 1980s.

The second factor is political: To this day, there is a large faction within al-Jamaa al-Islamiyya that is close to Iran and Hezbollah, and another that favors Turkey and Arab countries. This reality is forcing the party to remain centrist in order to avoid splintering.

“In 1982, Saeed Shaaban, a former leader of the party, seceded to found the al-Tawhid movement in Tripoli, a party close to Iran and which advocates for a solid alliance between Sunni and Shiite Islamists in Lebanon,” said researcher.

The movement proudly claims a centrist position. “We have long denounced divide and the politics of the axis in Lebanon,” said Ali Abou Yasseen, head of the Jamaa Islamiyya political bureau.

“The most important thing to us at the moment is to defend the Lebanese, the Palestinians and our holy places from Israeli aggression. Politics can wait,” he added.

The party’s secretary-general echoed this view:“We don’t intend to join any axis,” said Sheikh Mohammad Takkoush, who is close to the party’s pro-Iran wing, in an interview with the pro-Hezbollah al-Akhbar.

Al-Jamaa al-Islamiya is unlikely to be able to give Hezbollah the Sunni support it covets for other reasons.

First is the fact that the Islamist movement continues to be a secondary political force, as the electorate of this community has historically been won over by the Future Movement, a party with liberal and pro-West leanings.

Despite the latter’s absence, al-Jamaa al-Islamiya won just one seat in the 2022 parliamentary elections, compared to none four years earlier.

“Not only is the number of Sunnis in Lebanon who support political Islam relatively low, but they are also divided between several small groups: Al-Jamaa al-Islamiya, the pro-Syria Ahbash movement, the Salafists etc,” said Lefèvre.

Apart from ideology, the party lacks two pillars without which no movement can have an important place in the Sunni political scene.

The party does not benefit from financial and political support from Saudi Arabia, the historical guardian of Sunnis in Lebanon and is against the Muslim Brotherhood.

“The al-Jamaa al-Islamiya has tried to obtain support from Turkey and Qatar, but this has not translated into substantial support,” said the researcher.

Another shortcoming is that the party lacks a charismatic and popular leader. “Most Lebanese do not know who Mohammad Takkoush is,” added Lefèvre.

The Sheikh has neither the oratory skills and charisma of Hassan Nasrallah, his Hezbollah counterpart, nor the popularity of Saad Hariri. Will the al-Aqsa Flood allow him to attract attention?

This article was originally published in French in L'Orient-Le Jour. Translation by Joelle El Khoury.