Turabi, Hassan Abdallah al-

Turabi, Hassan Abdallah al-

(hä`sän äbdä`lä äl-to͞orä`bē), 1932–2016, Sudanese religious and political leader, b. Kassala, Anglo-Egyptian Sudan (now Sudan). He studied law in Sudan and London before receiving a doctorate from the Sorbonne. Joining the Sudanese branch of the Muslim BrotherhoodMuslim Brotherhood,
officially Jamiat al-Ikhwan al-Muslimun [Arab.,=Society of Muslim Brothers], religious and political organization founded (1928) in Egypt by Hasan al-Banna.
..... Click the link for more information. , he became its leader and taught law at the Univ. of Khartoum. In 1964 he came to prominence when the military dictatorship of Gen. Ibrahim Abboud was toppled. He then served in the national legislature (1965–67), and advocated a constitution based on Islamic law (sharia). A military coup engineered by leftist secularists (1969) led to harsh measures against Turabi and his party, but in 1977 he joined the authoritarian regime of President NimeiriNimeiri or Nimeiry, Muhammed Jaafar al-
, 1930–, Sudanese army officer and politician. Early active in the Sudanese nationalist movement, he was temporarily expelled from high school (1948) after leading a student
..... Click the link for more information. , who had led the 1969 coup. Turabi became attorney general (1979–82), but he later supported Nimeiri's ouster. He formed the National Islamic Front (1985; later part of the National Congress party) and supported the 1989 coup that brought Lt. Gen. Omar Hassan Ahmed al-BashirBashir, Omar Hassan Ahmed al-
, 1944–, Sudanese military and political leader, president of Sudan (1994–2019). He graduated from the Sudanese military academy (1966) and a Cairo military college and became a career army officer, ultimately rising to the rank of
..... Click the link for more information.  to power. Turabi was foreign minister (1989), secured the imposition of Islamic law, and formed an umbrella group for international Islamists; he aided bin Ladenbin Laden, Osama or Usama
, 1957?–2011, Saudi-born leader of Al Qaeda, a terrorist organization devoted to uniting all Muslims and establishing a transnational, strict-fundamentalist Islamic state.
..... Click the link for more information.  and was implicated in an attempt to assassinate Egypt's President MubarakMubarak, Muhammad Hosni
, 1928–, president of Egypt (1981–2011). Air force commander (1972–75) and vice president (1975–81) of Egypt, he became president after Anwar al-Sadat was assassinated on Oct. 6, 1981.
..... Click the link for more information. . His tenure as speaker of the national assembly (1996–99) ended when Bashir, threatened by parliament's attempt to limit his powers, forced him from power. Turabi formed the Popular National Congress, became a leading opposition figure, and spent months in detention (2002–3, 2004–5). The government several times alleged he supported Darfur rebels; in 2009 he accused Bashir of complicity in war crimes.