Honored Number (14) Mr. Essam Al-Attar The Legendary Revolutionary

• Mr. Essam Al-Attar was born in Damascus in 1927, the son of Judge Reda Al-Attar.
• Known for his innate oratory and eloquence from an early age, he became one of the most prominent preachers at the University Mosque in Damascus.
• He joined the Muslim Brotherhood from its inception in 1946, close to Sheikh Mustafa Al-Siba’i, serving as a bridge between the Sheikh and Syrian scholars of that time.
• He left for Egypt after his national stance against Adib Al-Shishakli, following an arrest warrant issued in 1951.
• In 1955, he was appointed Secretary-General of the Islamic Conference Organization.
• He took historical stands against the regime of Gamal Abdel Nasser during the union between Syria and Egypt.
• In 1961, he was elected as a deputy in the parliament for Damascus, during the separation from Egypt, and served as the head of the Islamic bloc.
• In 1962, he became the General Supervisor of the Muslim Brotherhood in Syria and remained in Damascus after the March 8 coup.
• In 1963, security forces raided his home, forcing him to leave Damascus under the pretext of performing the Hajj in 1964, never to return to Syria.
• In 1964, he was elected as the President of the Executive Office of the Muslim Brotherhood in Arab countries.
• He settled in Aachen, Germany, and survived several assassination attempts, one of which tragically succeeded in killing his wife, Mrs. “Banana Bint Sheikh Ali Al-Tantawi,” on March 17, 1981.
• He participated in founding the European Islamic Forum for Education, Culture, Human and Civilizational Communication.
• He was known for his openness to all currents and groups, whether agreeing or disagreeing with him, striving for unity and the unification of the Syrian front without division.
• He split from the Muslim Brotherhood following the violent conflict between the Brotherhood and the Syrian regime, rejecting the group’s use of violence.
• He declined “Hafez Al-Assad’s” invitation to return to Syria, citing the Syrian regime’s corruption and the impossibility of coexistence with it.
• Mr. Essam Al-Attar carried the idea of serving Islam and Muslims without discrimination, outside any organizations, and championed the service of humanity and the human being, focusing on the necessity of collective Syrian national action for the benefit of all Syrian components, away from sectarianism and doctrinism.

He has written numerous articles and books, including: “On the Palestinian Issue,” “Diwan of Departure,” “Diwan of the Revolution of Truth,” and “Starting Points and Goals.”

• He stood with the Syrian popular revolution in 2011, supporting the Syrians’ revolution against the Assad regime.
• Despite his advanced age and illness, Mr. Essam Al-Attar remains a national reference and a unique Syrian figure.

At the Syrian Future Movement, in recognition of his struggle, political history, his stance with his people against injustice and tyranny, and in gratitude to Syria’s great men and their contributions to the development of modern Islamic thought and their advocacy for democracy and human rights, we wish him complete health and a long life to see a liberated and united Syria. We present the Syrian Future Movement Shield this week to the legendary revolutionary: the educator and literary figure, Mr. Essam Al-Attar, a symbolic Syrian shield that carries our vision and inclusive national approach.