Islamic Front for Armed Jihad

The Islamic Front for Armed Jihad (French name, Front Islamique du Djihad Armé, hence the abbreviation FIDA) was a militant Islamist organization active during the Algerian Civil War. It was founded in 1993[a] when it split from the Armed Islamic Group of Algeria (GIA), under the leadership of Muhammad Said.[1][2][3] Coming from the Djaz'ara (Algerianist) wing,[4] it called for the violent overthrow of the secular Algerian government, and a system of government based on shari'a law.[citation needed]

It became notorious for its killings of intellectuals, including politicians and journalists.[1][2] These included the killing of Kasdi Merbah and of the head of the UGTA union.[5]

On July 21, 1996, it merged under the auspices of Mustapha Kartali with the Movement for an Islamic State (MEI) and other splinter factions of the GIA to form the Islamic Movement for Preaching and Jihad (MIPD).[citation needed]


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  1. ^ a b Zoubir, Yahia H. (25 February 2019). "Civil Strife, Politics, and Religion in Algeria". Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Politics. doi:10.1093/acrefore/9780190228637.013.806.
  2. ^ a b Botha, Anneli (June 2008). Terrorism in the Maghreb: The transnationalisation of domestic terrorism (144 ed.). Institute for Security Studies. p. 37. ISBN 1920114327.
  3. ^ Jules, Tavis D. (2023). "46. Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM)". In Romaniuk, Scott N.; Catino, Martin Scott; Augustus Martin, C. (eds.). The Handbook of Homeland Security (1st ed.). CRC Press. p. 318. ISBN 9781315144511.
  4. ^ Hafez, Mohammed M. (2 April 2020). "Fratricidal Rebels: Ideological Extremity and Warring Factionalism in Civil Wars". Terrorism and Political Violence. 32 (3): 604–629. doi:10.1080/09546553.2017.1389726. hdl:10945/56404.
  5. ^ Layachi, Azzedine (January 2004). "Political liberalisation and the islamist movement in algeria". The Journal of North African Studies. 9 (2): 46–67. doi:10.1080/1362938042000323338.