Omar al-Mukhtar Biography

 

Omar Al-Mukhtar, nicknamed the Sheikh of the Martyrs or the Lion of the Desert (b. 1862 - September 16, 1931), was an Arab Muslim leader. He fought the Italian invasion from their entry into Libya until 1931.

His family Name

The Lion of the Desert Omar Mukhtar.

He is Omar bin Al-Mukhtar bin Omar, from the house of Farhat, from the Buridan tribe, and she is from the Al-Manfa tribe. His mother is Aisha bint Muharib.

His birth and upbringing

Omar Al-Mukhtar belongs to the Manfa tribe, one of the major Almoravid tribes in Cyrenaica. He was born in 1862 AD in the village of Janzour in the Dafna area on the eastern sides of Cyrenaica, located east of Libya on the Egyptian border. He has raised an orphan. His father, Mukhtar bin Omar, passed away on his way to Mecca, accompanied by his wife, Aisha.

Omar Al-Mukhtar received his first education in the corner of Janzour, then traveled to Jagboub to stay for eight years to study and collect on the senior scholars and sheiks of Senusi, led by Imam Sayyid Mahdi Sanusi, the pole of the Sanusi movement. as he wished.

The Sheikh of the Martyrs, Omar Al-Mukhtar, married several wives, and he had only children from Mrs. Zina bint Al-Mabrouk Saeed Buzwair, from the family of Hawthul Beit Tamiya, the Baraasa tribe of the Bani Rashid tribes, who gave birth to his eldest daughter, the late Fatima Omar Al-Mukhtar.

Signs of virtuosity and sobriety of mind appeared on him, so he acquired the attention and care of his teacher, Sayyid Al-Mahdi Al-Senussi, which increased him in highness and loftiness. Al-Alsun praised him among scholars, sheiks of tribes, and notables of cities until Mr. Al-Mahdi said about him describing him, “If we had ten like Omar Al-Mukhtar, we would be satisfied with them.” God Almighty has endowed him with faculties, including the ruggedness of his Bedouin voice, the sweetness of his tongue, his choice of effective words in the art of speech, and his enchanting charm to the point of controlling his listeners and drawing their attention.

Omar Al-Mukhtar participated in the jihad among the Mujahideen in the French-Libyan war in the southern regions (Western Sudan, Chad) and around the valley. Al-Mukhtar settled for some time in Qura, as a fighter, and a fighter, then he was appointed sheik of the zawiya (Ain Kalak) to spend a period of his life as a teacher and preacher of Islam in those remote lands. After the death of Sayyid Muhammad al-Mahdi al-Senussi in 1902 CE, he was summoned and appointed Sheikh of the Zawiya al-Qusour.

Jihad against the Italian invasion

Omar Al-Mukhtar lived the war of liberation and jihad since its beginning, day by day. When Italy declared war on Turkey on September 29, 1911 AD, and warships began pouring their shells on the cities of the Libyan coast, Derna, and Tripoli, then Tobruk, Benghazi, and Al-Khums, Omar Al-Mukhtar was at that time a resident In Gallo, after his return from Kufra, where he met Sayyid Ahmad al-Sharif, and when he learned of the Italian invasion in what was known as the Ottoman-Italian war, he rushed to the centers of the Mujahideen gathering, where he contributed to establishing the role of his sons and organizing the jihad and resistance movement until Sayyid Ahmad al-Sharif arrived from Kufra. The period that followed the withdrawal of the Turks from Libya in 1912 CE witnessed the most significant battles in the history of the Libyan jihad, including, for example, the Battle of Friday at Derna on May 16, 1913 CE, in which the Italians killed ten officers and sixty soldiers and four hundred people were wounded and missing, along with the Italians’ withdrawal without order Abandoning their weapons, supplies and ammunition, and the Battle of Bu Shamal from Ain Mara on October 6, 1913, and dozens of other battles.

Omar Mukhtar.

When Amelio was appointed military governor of Cyrenaica, he decided to work on three axes:

The first: cutting off supplies coming from Egypt and confronting the Mujahideen in the Marmara region.

The second: Fighting the Mujahideen in Al-Arqoub, Sultanah, and Al-Makhali.

Third: Fighting the Mujahideen in Mesous and Ajdabiya.

But the Italian leader found the fire of the Mujahideen waiting for him in the battles of Umm Shakhnab, Shalahimah, and Zueitina in February 1914 AD, and the jihad movement continued after that until it reached a new stage with the advent of the First World War.

Fascists and Mujahideen

After the fascist coup in Italy in October 1922, and after the victory in that war on the side that Italy joined. The situation inside Libya changed, and the pressure on Mr. Muhammad Idris Al-Senussi intensified, and he was forced to leave the country, entrusting military and political actions to Omar Al-Mukhtar, while his brother Al-Rida took his place in supervising religious affairs.

After Al-Mukhtar confirmed the Italian intentions in the aggression, he went to Egypt in 1923 AD to consult with Mr. Idris regarding the matter of the country. After his return, he organized the roles of the Mujahideen. He placed Hussein Al-Juweifi on Al-Baraasa and Youssef Burhil Al-Mismari on the slaves and Al-Fadil Bou Omar on the role of Al-Hassa, and he assumed the general leadership.

After the Italian invasion of the city of Ajdabiya, the headquarters of the Libyan leadership, all pacts and treaties became null and void. The Mujahideen withdrew from the city and Italy began to crawl with its armies from several areas towards the Green Mountain. In the meantime, the masses of the Mujahideen raced to form roles and alignment under the leadership of Omar Al-Mukhtar, as the people took the initiative to Supply the Mujahideen with supplies, equipment, and weapons, and when the Italians were fed up with the defeat at the hands of the Mujahideen, they wanted to prevent them from the supply route, so they sought to occupy Jaghbub and a significant campaign was directed against it on February 8, 1926 AD. Complete with the determination of the greats and the determination of heroes.

The Italians noticed that the situation dictated that they had to take over the Fezzan region to cut off supplies to the Mujahideen, so a campaign was launched in January 1928 AD, and it did not achieve its purpose in occupying Fezzan after it paid a heavy price. And the siege of the Mujahideen eased and they were cut off from their supply centers, but the events did not affect them and discourage them, and the evidence of this is the battle of April 22, which lasted for two whole days, in which the Mujahideen won and gained a lot of equipment.

Peace negotiations in Sidi Arhouma

The chosen one among his men from the Mujahideen.

And successive victories prompted Italy to reconsider its plans and make extensive changes, so Mussolini ordered a change of military leadership, where he appointed Badoglio military governor of Libya in January 1929 AD, and this change is the beginning of the decisive stage between the Italians and the Mujahideen.

The new ruler of Libya pretended in his desire for peace to find the time necessary to implement his plans and change the fighting style of his soldiers and asked to negotiate with Omar Al-Mukhtar, those negotiations that began on April 20, 1929 AD.

The Sheikh responded to the call of peace and tried to reach an understanding with them on a formula to get them out of the whirlpool of destruction. So their chief met Omar Al-Mukhtar and his companion's leaders on June 19, 1929 AD in Sidi Arhouma. The Italian delegation was headed by Badul John himself, the second man after Benito Mussolini, and his deputy, Siciliano, but the purpose was not to negotiate but to procrastinate and buy time for their forces to catch their breath.

And when the Mukhtar found that those negotiations required him to either leave the country for the Hijaz or Egypt or to stay in Cyrenaica and end the jihad and surrender in exchange for money and temptations, he refused all these offers, and as an honorable hero and a great mujahid, he made the third choice, which is to continue the jihad until victory or martyrdom.

Al-Mukhtar became aware of the treachery and deception of the Italians, and on October 20, 1929 AD, he sent an appeal to his countrymen asking them to be careful and vigilant against the tricks of the invaders. Omar al-Mukhtar's predictions were correct. On January 16, 1930 AD, planes dropped their missiles on the Mujahideen.

General Garciani

Mukhtar after his capture and transfer to Benghazi.

The positions and achievements of the Mukhtar prompted Italy to study the situation anew, and it came to the appointment of Garciani, the most brutal and bloodiest of the army's generals. To implement a plan of annihilation and extermination unprecedented in history in its brutality, atrocity, and violence, was represented in several measures mentioned by Garcia in his book “Curqa al-Muhatha”:

• Locking the Libyan-Egyptian border with barbed wire to prevent the arrival of supplies and ammunition.
• The establishment of the emergency court in April 1930 AD.
• Opening prison doors in every city and village and setting up gallows in every direction.
• Allocating the sites of Al-Aqila and Al-Buraiqah from the desert west of Cyrenaica, Al-Bayda, Al-Macron, and Saluk, from the middle of the Al-Hamra Cyrenaica, to be the sites of arrest, exile, and displacement.
• Work on the siege of the Mujahideen in the Green Mountain and the occupation of infidels.

The Italians’ operations in Vivazan ended with the occupation of Murzuq and Ghat in January and February 1930 AD, then they engaged the Mujahideen in decisive battles. On August 26, 1930 AD, the Italian planes dropped about half a ton of bombs on Al-Jawf and Al-Taj. In November, Badoglio and Garcia agreed on the campaign line from Ajdabiya to Gallo To the well of Zigin to Al-Jawf, and on January 28, 1931 AD, the infidels fell into the hands of the invaders, and the fall of the infidels had great effects on the movement of jihad and resistance.

His Capture

In the Battle of Saniya in October 1930 CE, his glasses fell from Sheikh Omar Al-Mukhtar, and when one of the Italian soldiers found them and brought them to his command, their fur was Garsiani and he said: “Now we have the glasses, and the head will follow them one day.”

On September 11, 1931 AD, while Sheikh Omar Al-Mukhtar was surveying the area of ​​Salata in a constellation of his knights, the Italian garrisons knew his location and sent forces to besiege him and reinforcements followed. His hand completely paralyzed his movement. He was unable to extricate himself and could not take his gun to defend himself, so the enemy quickly surrounded him from all sides and recognized his personality, so he was immediately transferred to the port of Sousse and then put on a cruiser, which transported him straight to Benghazi, where he was deposited in the big prison in the Sidi Akhribish area. The Italians could not transport the sheik by land for fear of the Mujahideen being exposed to them in an attempt to rid their leader.

His arrest in the ranks of the enemy had a great resonance so that Graciani did not believe it at first. In Italy, he is attacked and bitter criticism comes from his comrades, doubting his ability to manage the conflict. And if fate plays its part, he receives an urgent telegram from Naghazi that his archenemy, Omar Al-Mukhtar, is behind bars. Graziani was so hysterical that he could hardly believe the news. Sometimes he sits on his seat and sometimes he gets up, and at other times he comes out walking on his feet and talking to himself in a loud voice, pointing with his hands and saying: "It is true that they arrested Omar Al-Mukhtar? And he answers to himself: No, I don't think." He did not rest his mind, so he decided to cancel his vacation and took a private plane and landed in Benghazi on the same day and asked to bring Omar Al-Mukhtar to his office to see it with his own eyes.

Captive of The  Lion

Gerciani arrived in Benghazi on September 14, and announced the convening of the "Special Court" on September 15, 1931 AD, and on the morning of that day and before the trial, Garciani wanted to speak with Omar Al-Mukhtar.

"When he came before my office, I saw in him the figure of the thousands of Almoravids whom I met during the desert wars. His hands are chained, despite the fractures and wounds he sustained during the battle, and his face was compressed because he was covered with his head (with scraps) and dragged himself with difficulty due to his fatigue during the war. Traveling by sea, and in general, it seems to me that the one standing in front of me is a man who is not like men, with his appearance and prestige, even though he feels the bitterness of captivity.

Gerciani: Why did you fight so hard against the government's continued fascism?

The Sheikh replied: For the sake of my religion and my country.

Graciani: What did you think he had achieved?

The Sheikh replied: There is nothing but your expulsion...because you are rapists. As for war, it is an obligation upon us, and victory is only from God.

Gursiani: Because of your power and prestige, in how many days can you order the revolutionaries to submit to our rule and surrender their arms?

The Sheikh replied: I can't do anything... and in vain, we revolutionaries have previously sworn that we would all die one after the other, and not surrender or lay down arms...

And Garciani continues, "When he stood to prepare to leave, his forehead shone as if a halo of light surrounded him, and my heart trembled from the majesty of the situation. I, who fought the battles of the world and desert wars, was called the Lion of the Desert. Despite this, my lips were trembling and I could not utter a single word, so I finished the interview and ordered him back. He was taken to prison to be brought to trial in the evening, and when he stood, he tried to extend his hand to shake my hand, but he could not, because his hands were bound with iron.

His Trial

The trial of Omar Al-Mukhtar.

A mock court was held for the Sheikh Martyr in the administration center of the Fascist Party in Benghazi on Tuesday evening at a quarter past five on September 15, 1931 AD, and an hour later, the death sentence was pronounced by hanging to death.

When he translated the ruling for him, the sheikh said, "The ruling is only for God...not your false judgment...we belong to God and to Him, we shall return."

- Here is a verbatim quotation of the trial minutes as stated in the Italian documents:

“It is in the year one thousand nine hundred and thirty-one; The ninth year, and on the fifteenth day of September, in Benghazi, and at exactly 17 o’clock in the “Littorio” Palace, after preparing it as a courtroom for the sessions of the Special Court for the Defense of State Security, consisting of Messrs.:

- Lieutenant-Colonel Uberto Vanteri Marinoni, Acting President, on behalf of the original president, who is absent for a legitimate excuse.

Attorney Dr. Francesco Romano (judge rapporteur).

- Major Kawallier Konario Diletlo (Advisor, Thoroughbred).

- Pioneer of the "Voluntary Militia for National Security" (Collier Giovanni Manzoni, Principal Adviser).

- Pioneer of the "Volunteer Militia for National Security (College Mikele Mandola, Principal Adviser), and the President on behalf of the Principal President, absent with a legitimate excuse.

- With the assistance of Lieutenant General of the Infantry Corps, Eduardo de Cristofano (acting clerk of the military session).

To consider the case against Omar Al-Mukhtar, bin Aisha bint Muharib, aged 73, born in Dafna, Manfa tribe, Buridan family, Farhat house; Marital status: Married with children, knows how to read and write, and has no criminal record, in detention since September 12, 1931.

The accused of the crimes stipulated and their penalties in Articles 284-285-286-575-576 (3), and Article 26, items: 2-4-6-10, as he rose, from 1911 until his arrest in the south of Sultanah on September 11, 1931, By inciting and leading rebellion against the Italian state authorities, within the territory of the colony, and by participating in ambushes of isolated units of our armed forces and in numerous battles and raids for looting and banditry, with murders motivated by his tendency to cruelty and brutality, and acts of oppression and abuse, with the intent of causing destruction and bloodshed to separate Colonial for the motherland. »

After that, the audience was allowed to enter the hearing room, while the accused sat in the space designated for the accused, under military guard, free-handed, and not shackled of any kind.

The Public Prosecutor, Senor "Collier" Ovicali Giuseppe Bidendo, was also present, as a military prosecutor, charged with defending the accused, lawyer, and artillery captain, Roberto Luntano.

President has announced the opening of the session. The translator, Mr. Nasri Hermes, is also present, who is asked by the president to provide his identity data, and he answers:

Nasri Hermes, son of the deceased Michel, 53 years old, born in Diyarbakir, Mesopotamia (Iraq), head of the translation office at the Cyrenaica government.

The President shall instruct him to take the prescribed oath, after being warned as prescribed, and he shall take it aloud and in the following form: ((I swear that I will convey the questions to the person to be questioned by me faithfully and honestly and that I will convey the answers faithfully)).

The chief, through the interpreter, directs questions to the accused about his identity, and he gives them in accordance with the foregoing and then alerts him to listen to what he will hear. At this point, the prosecutor requested to exempt the translator Nasri from the task because of his illness and to replace him with the collier Lombroso, son of Aaron and Maria Kandos, who was born in Tunis on February 27, 1891 AD, and whose profession is an industrialist, is recorded in the record.

The President shall assign him to take the prescribed oath, after being regularly warned;

The session clerk reads the accusation memorandum, and the translator undertakes to translate it for the accused, after which he lists the list of documents and documents related to the case.

After listing it, the president assigns the translator to translate it, since the accused is not familiar with the Italian language, and then he starts questioning him about the acts attributed to him; He responds to them, and the translator shall translate the responses of the accused to them.

And it is established in the report that the accused regularly responds to each accusation according to what was stated in his written interrogation report, acknowledging that he is the leader of the resistance in Cyrenaica and in this capacity he is the perpetrator and instigator of all the crimes that were committed in the colony’s lands during the last decade of time, i.e. the period during which he remained the actual leader of the resistance.

In response to a question, he answers:

Ten years ago, almost, I was the head of the province. It is proved here that the accused kept answering every specific question about a particular accusation, by saying: (It is useless to ask me about individual facts, and what I have committed against Italy and the Italians, ten years ago, until now, was of my own will and permission, when I did not participate in those same acts. ).

In response to a question, he answers: (The raids were also carried out under my command, and some of them were carried out by me myself).

The President gives the floor to the Public Prosecutor: After he took the floor, he outlined his demand that the court, after confirming the conviction of the accused of the crimes attributed to him, would kindly issue a death sentence against him and the consequences thereof.

The defense, in turn, ends its plea for clemency for the accused. After the accused gives the floor as the last speaker, the president announces the closing of the debate, and the court withdraws to the deliberation room to determine the verdict.

The court soon returned to the sitting room; Let the president pronounce the verdict loudly, in the presence of all concerned parties. The translator will translate the verdict.

Prove in writing all of the preceding in this report, which was signed by: the clerk of the military court.

Signature: Eduardo de Cristofano, President (Colonel Colonel Omerco Manzulli).

Clerk of the Military Court, Signed: Edoardo De Cristofano.

President: (Lieutenant-Colonel Omerco Manzoni)

Signature: Umberto Marinoni.

Acting Military Court Clerk

Signature

Execution

Omar Mukhtar after his execution.

On the morning of the day following the trial, Wednesday, September 16, 1931 (the first of Jumada al-Awwal 1350), all necessary measures were taken in the Saluk Center to implement the verdict by bringing all the divisions of the army, militia, and aviation,

And brought 20 thousand of the families and all the political detainees, especially from different places to witness the execution of the sentence of their leader.

And Sheikh Omar Al-Mukhtar was brought handcuffed, and on his face was a smile of contentment with fate and destiny.

And the planes began flying in space over the detainees with a loud buzzing so that Omar Al-Mukhtar could not address them.

At nine o'clock in the morning, the Sheikh was handed over to the executioner, and his face was rejoicing in glad tidings of martyrdom, and he was still and calm, so he put the noose around his neck. O reassuring soul, return to your Lord satisfied and contented” to make it catch the end of his heroic life. After a few minutes, his pure and pure soul ascended to its Lord, complaining to Him about the suffering of the oppressors and the oppression of the colonizers.

The execution of the Sheikh was preceded by very strict orders to torture and beat anyone who showed sadness or appeared to cry at the execution of Omar Al-Mukhtar. But the voices of protest became louder and were not restrained by the whips of the Italians. Fatima Daruha screamed and lamented the grief of the homeland when the sheik was hanged, and the Italians described her as "the woman who broke the wall of silence."

After his death

After the Italians succeeded in executing the Mujahid Sheikh Omar Al-Mukhtar, the leader of the Mujahideen in 1350 AH / 1931 AD, the Italian Empire was assured of its authority and owed it to the Libyan regions until 1362 AH / 1942 AD. People were suffering in despair and despondency; The emir of the country is in exile in Egypt, the people of solution and contract are far away and exiled, half of the people or more perished, and the rest are weak, and another Italian leader began expropriating the lands and handing them over to the Italians and turning the people of Libya into servants and slaves.

In September 1939, World War II began, and after France collapsed, Italy declared war on England and France on June 10, 1940, led by its leader, Mussolini, on the side of Germany. The defeat was, as at the end of February 7, 1942 AD, Rommel's defeated armies vacated all of Tripoli. The country returned to the leadership of the Senussi, and the name of Omar al-Mukhtar, the martyr, became high and a symbol of jihad against foreign aggression and its hatred.

His memory

A picture of Omar Al-Mukhtar on the flag of the Kingdom of Libya, which the revolutionaries took as their flag during the 2011 Libyan revolution.

Omar Mukhtar's portrait appears on the ten dinars banknote.

The character of Omar Mukhtar appeared in the movie Lion of the Desert, 1981, presented by Anthony Quinn, Oliver Reed, and Erin Pappas. Its events revolve around the life of Omar Al-Mukhtar and his resistance to the Italian occupation.