Abu-Ali Urbuti

Who is Abu-Ali Urbuti?

Abu-Ali Urbuti is an Egyptian Muslim sheikh who is best known for his fiery anti-American rhetoric and his unabashed support of Khalid Islambouli, the man convicted of assassinating Egyptian president Mohamed Anwar Al-Sadat in 1981. Originally a pacifist and known as a proponent of non-violent change within the Muslim world, he was transformed by the torturous persecution he suffered at the hands of the Egyptian government into an advocate for terroristic jihad.

In January 1982 Urbuti and seven of his followers were arrested and charged with "Seditious Conspiracy" in the assassination of Sadat for supposedly issuing a fatwa authorizing the act. He was held for nearly eight months in solitary confinement. Upon his release, Urbuti, now blind in his left eye and suffering from frequent and violent Grand Mal seizures, accused his jailors of repeated acts of violent torture. In his official statement to the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, Urbuti tells of daily interrogations by the State Security Prosecutor's Office after which the prosecutors would return him to the prison for another round of beatings and torture which, he says, led to his injuries and subsequent permanent disabilities.