Subhi al-Tufayli

Subhi al-Tufayli
صبحي الطفيلي
al-Tufayli in 2022
Secretary-General of Hezbollah
In office
1989–1991
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byAbbas al-Musawi
Personal details
Born1947 (age 76–77)
Brital, Lebanon
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Subhi al-Tufayli (Arabic: صبحي الطفيلي; born 1947) is a Lebanese senior Shi'ite cleric and politician who helped found Hezbollah in 1982 and served as its first secretary-general from 1989 until 1991. From a comparatively young age, Tufayli achieved popular following amongst Lebanese Shi'ite community, who viewed him as the most learned Shi'ite scholar in the Beqaa Valley.[1][2][3][4]

Al-Tufayli is a Shia Islamist, but is a very vocal critic of Iran and the current Hezbollah leadership. Tufayli's split with Hezbollah arose during 1990s after the death of co-founder Abbas al-Mousavi, when the faction of Hassan Nasrallah favoured by Iran began to emerge dominant.[5][6] The main dispute was over Tufayli's insistence on shunning Lebanese politics and instead focus on fighting armed insurgency against Israel, which the Nasrallah faction downplayed.[7][8] After violent confrontations between Tufayli's followers and Hezbollah members, he was expelled from Hezbollah in 1998.[9]

The cleric has since been active as a fierce opponent of Hezbollah and Iran; and has urged his followers to stand against Iranian hegemony in the region.[10][11][12]

  1. ^ Elie Alagha, Joseph (2011). Hizbullah's Documents: From the 1985 Open Letter to the 2009 Manifesto. Pallas Publications. pp. 22, 23. ISBN 978-90-8555-037-2.
  2. ^ Ranstorp, Magnus (1997). Hizb'Allah in Lebanon: The Politics of the Western Hostage Crisis. London, UK: Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 35, 36. doi:10.1057/9780230377509. ISBN 978-0-333-68401-6.
  3. ^ Reich, Walter; Kramer, Martin (1998). "8: The moral logic of Hezbollah". Origins of Terrorism: Psychologies, Ideologies, Theologies, States of Mind. Washington DC, USA: Woodrow Wilson Center Press. p. 138. ISBN 0-943875-89-7.
  4. ^ M. Shaw, J. Demy, Jeffrey, Timothy (2017). War and Religion: An Encyclopedia of Faith and Conflict. ABC-CLIO. p. 339. ISBN 978-1-61069-516-9.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  5. ^ Elie Alagha, Joseph (2011). Hizbullah's Documents: From the 1985 Open Letter to the 2009 Manifesto. Pallas Publications. pp. 22, 23. ISBN 978-90-8555-037-2.
  6. ^ al-Aloosy, Massaab (2020). The changing ideology of Hezbollah. Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 77, 78. ISBN 978-3-030-34846-5.
  7. ^ Ranstorp, Magnus (1997). Hizb'Allah in Lebanon: The Politics of the Western Hostage Crisis. London, UK: Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 35, 36. doi:10.1057/9780230377509. ISBN 978-0-333-68401-6.
  8. ^ al-Aloosy, Massaab (2020). The changing ideology of Hezbollah. Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 77, 78. ISBN 978-3-030-34846-5.
  9. ^ al-Aloosy, Massaab (2020). The changing ideology of Hezbollah. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 78. ISBN 978-3-030-34846-5.
  10. ^ "Pressure intensifies on Lebanese Hizbullah as top Shia clerics speak out". Diyaruna. 2021. Archived from the original on 5 February 2023.
  11. ^ Kawas, Mohamed (8 May 2016). "Former Hezbollah chief: 'Tehran is only investing in Lebanon's Shia to serve its own interests'". The Arab Weekly. Archived from the original on 18 June 2021.
  12. ^ El-Bar, Karim (30 December 2016). "'They exploited sectarianism': Former Hezbollah leader Tufayli talks Iran, Syria". Middle East Eye. Archived from the original on 20 October 2021.