Moussa Abu Marzouk

Moussa Abu Marzouk (موسى أبو مرزوق), born in 1951 in the Gazan border town of Rafah, helped found Hamas in 1987 and is a member of its Politburo. He is also the deputy head of the group’s ‘external’ politburo and a leading figure in reconciliation talks with Fatah.

Marzouk began his political career in the United Arab Emirates, where he helped establish a branch of the Palestinian Muslim Brotherhood. He later went to the United States where he helped found a number of Islamic institutions and foundations, including ones focused on the Palestinian cause. He is a founding member of the Islamic University in Gaza.

He was deported twice by Jordan in 1995 and 1999 for his work with Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood; the first time he was extradited to the US, where the FBI arrested and detained him without charge until 1997 when he was sent back to Jordan; and in 1999, when he was deported to Syria. He left Syria in 2012 and has since split his time between Gaza, Egypt, and Qatar.

Photo by Nicoleon via Wikimedia CommonsCC BY-SA 4.0.