Issam al-Attar

Issam al-Attar (; 1927 – 3 May 2024) was a Syrian dissident politician and Islamic preacher who was the former leader of the Muslim Brotherhood in Syria. He was a symbol of dissent and resistance against the rule of Hafez al-Assad during the 1970s, and was later forced into exile in Aachen, Germany where he resided for the remainder of his life.

Biography Al-Attar was born in 1927 in Damascus, Syria. His father was the jurist Mohammed Reda al-Attar. As an eleven-year-old, he became a member of the Shabab Muhammad (Youths of Muhammad) political group, which was founded by Mustafa al-Siba'i, who later became the first head of the Muslim Brotherhood in Syria. Following his criticism of Adib Shishakli in 1951, he was forced to settle in Egypt, where he met Sayyid Qutb, Mohamed Bachir El Ibrahimi, Mahmoud Mohamed Shaker and Abd al-Wahhāb Azzām. Later on, he returned to Syria following his father's illness. In 1954, he accompanied Hassan al-Hudaybi during his visit to Syria. He was a vehement opponent of the United Arab Republic, fearing police state repression against the Islamists, in which he was arrested several times during the existence of the Union. He became the second Supreme Guide of the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood, taking over from its founder al-Siba'i, in 1961.

He was denied re-entry to Syria by the newly installed Ba'athist government following a Hajj trip to Mecca in 1963. During the Islamist uprising in Syria,

Al-Attar died on 3 May 2024 in Aachen, Germany, at the age of 97.

Personal life His sister, Najah al-Attar was the Vice President of Syria and is the only woman to have served in the post, which she held from 2006 to 2024. Previously she was Minister of Culture from 1976 to 2000. His wife Banan, daughter of Ali Al-Tantawi, was assassinated at her father's home in Aachen by a death squad sent by the Assad regime on 17 March 1981. One of his daughters married Ali Ghaleb Himmat.