Hasan Mahsum

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Hasan Mahsum
Born 1964
Flag of People's Republic of China Shule County, Kashgar, Xinjiang
Died October 2, 2003
Flag of Pakistan South Waziristan

Hasan Mahsum (Uyghur: ھەسەن مەخسۇم/Hesen Mexsum; Chinese: 艾山·买合苏木, Pinyin: Àishān Măihésūmù), also known as Abu-Muhammad al-Turkestani and Ashan Sumut, founded and led the East Turkestan Islamic Movement, an Islamic terrorist organization suspected of ties to Al Qaeda. He was shot dead in a counter-terrorism operation on 2 October 2003 by the Pakistani Army.[1]

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[edit] Political activities

Mahsum, a native of Shule (Kunixar) County, became involved with the East Turkestan independence movement early in his life; in his late 20s, he was already a lecturer at a training camp in Yecheng County, preaching Jihad and advocating the use of violence against Chinese authorities.[2] He was arrested in October 1993 by the Chinese police for terrorist activities and sentenced to three years of re-education through labour.[3] After fleeing China in 1997, Mahsum lived in Afghanistan and Pakistan; he held an Afghan passport issued by the Taliban. In early 1999, he was said to have met with Osama bin Laden, who offered him US$300,000 of financial assistance for the East Turkestan Islamic Movement in the following year;[4] Mahsum himself denied any connection with bin Laden.[5] The Chinese government has accused him of directing a series of violent terrorist activities including robbery and murder in Urumqi on February 4, 1999 and violent murders in the Khotan region on December 14, 1999;[6] it is believed that these attacks were actually carried out by an operative of his named Mutalif Kasim.[2]

[edit] Death

Chinese, Pakistani, and US officials confirm that Mahsum was shot dead in an early-morning raid on a suspected al-Qaeda training camp by the Pakistan Army in South Waziristan, near the Afghan border, on October 2, 2003.[7] The Pakistani army attacked an al-Qaeda hideout in South Waziristan near the border with Afghanistan on 2 October 2003, shooting and killing eight terrorists, including Mahsum. The Beijing News and International Herald Leader initially reported that the United States worked with Pakistan in a joint counter-terrorism operation, but Major General Shaukat Sultan, a spokesman for the Pakistani military, denied U.S. military involvement. Sultan said "DNA tests were conducted to determine it was him." The Chinese government assisted in identifying his body.[1]

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b "Chinese militant "shot dead"", BBC News, 2003-12-23. Retrieved on 2007-01-27.
  2. ^ a b Sichor, Yitzhak (2006). "Fact and Fiction: A Chinese Documentary on Eastern Turkestan Terrorism". China and Eurasia Forum Quarterly 4 (2): pp.89-108. Retrieved on 2006-12-15. 
  3. ^
  4. ^ Raman. B (2005-01-27). "Paper no. 1232: Explosions in Xinjiang". South Asia Analysis Group. Retrieved on 2006-12-15.
  5. ^ Mackerras, Colin (Winter 2004). "Ethnicity in China: The Case of Xinjiang". Harvard Asia Quarterly. Retrieved on 2006-12-15.
  6. ^ Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the United States of America (2003-10-24). Spokesperson's remarks on the Death of Hasan Mahsum, Head of the "East Turkistan Islamic Movement". Press release. Retrieved on 2006-12-15.
  7. ^ "Pakistan Army Kills 12 In Offensive Against Al-Qaida", Dow Jones International News, 2003-10-02. Retrieved on 2006-12-15.

[edit] External links

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