Ebi Spahiu
Following the demise of the Islamic State (IS) territorially, authorities across Europe are grappling with serious questions regarding the return of foreign IS fighters. Countries have followed a variety of paths in dealing with returnees. These include judicial proceedings and jail time for those arrested, monitoring and placement in rehabilitation and deradicalization programs. Many of those who have been arrested in the Balkans in connection with IS have been key recruiters and logistical facilitators for fighters traveling to Syria and Iraq. These local sympathizers have sent about 1,000 Balkan citizens to the Middle East to join groups such as al-Nusra and IS. [1] Many traveled with their families.
Genci Balla, known by his followers as Abdurrahim Balla, played a crucial role in promoting an Islamist ideology in line with terrorist organizations’ objectives for their war in Syria. He is one of over 70 individuals across the Western Balkans sentenced for their connections to terrorism. [2] Genci Balla was arrested in March 2014, following a police raid on two self-proclaimed mosques that were allegedly responsible for facilitating travel for over 70 people who joined Al-Nusra and later IS in Syria and Iraq (Panorama, April 15, 2015). He was tried on charges of advocating terrorist acts, recruiting people for terrorism and for promoting a religious divide between Albania’s majority moderate Muslim population and the Christian community, who have a long tradition of harmony (Civitas.al, March 17, 2014). Balla was sentenced to 17 years in prison, but his influence over followers inside and outside prison continues to cause concern for authorities.
Background
According to intelligence reports accessed by local media in 2014, Genci Balla was the mastermind of a terrorist cell operating in the Unaza e Re and Mëzez mosques, located outside Tirana. This cell rejected the authority of the Muslim Community of Albania, locally known as KMSH, the officially recognized religious entity that follows a Hanafi Islamic jurisprudence (Civitas.al, March 17, 2014). These two mosques are still frequented by followers on the outskirts Tirana. Since the police raid four years ago, the Muslim Community of Albania has taken some control over the Mëzez mosque by assigning a new imam (OraNews, November 19, 2015). However, it is not well known whether leadership replacements have proven effective in Mëzez or the many other similar mosques the Albanian Muslim Community has taken control over in the past few years (Reporter.al, April 6, 2016).
Reports since 2014 identify Balla and his aides as responsible for recruiting men, women and children to be sent to Syria. During his trial, Balla and the eight individuals that were part of his network rejected representation by a lawyer citing the Quran and the Hadith as the only authority they would recognize (VizionPlus, March 17, 2015). Balla was particularly singled out for his role in convincing some of his followers to bring their children with them to the Middle East. He further advocated for parents to stop sending their children to “secular” schools altogether, often saying that the curriculum in state schools are directly opposed to the teachings of Islam. [3] In one of the testimonies, Balla was confronted by Zamir Mani, his wife’s former husband. Mani accused Balla of convincing his ex-wife, Almira Kastrati, who is one of Balla’s four wives, to take away her four-year-old son without his biological father’s consent (Shqiptarja.com, March 16, 2014).
Career Before 2014
Prior to his arrest in 2014, Balla was known to authorities and to the leadership of KMSH. The Muslim Community repeatedly rejected his attempts to promote religious divides and to introduce a more conservative Salafi strain of Islam that was unfamiliar to Albanian Muslims. According to reports, Balla had been under observation from intelligence agencies for over six years before his arrest (Civitas.al, March 17, 2014). According to different accounts from religious leaders consulted for the purpose of this piece, he was often kicked out of different congregations in Elbasan, a city near Tirana, where he was trying to establish his presence as a preacher. [4]
Balla, now 39 years old, was born in Librazhd, a small town in central Albania. According to previous reports and his own accounts during trials conducted by Tirana’s high crimes court, he spent many years studying in Saudi Arabia at the Medina Islamic University. It is here Balla was first exposed to takfiri ideology that inspired his activities in Albania (Gazeta Shqip, March 12, 2014). He returned to Albania in 2008 and since then has been a leader of the Unaza e Re mosque located on the outskirts of Tirana. The mosque has been under fire for refusing to concede to the authority of the official Muslim Community, for using its space for the training of foreign trained fighters (FTFs) to be sent to Syria, and for the schooling of young children in Islamic teachings and Sharia law (Opinion.al, March 18, 2014).
Along with Bujar Hysa, another self-proclaimed imam currently in prison, Balla led a wide network of followers across the country. Balla has collaborated with other radical preachers in Kosovo and Macedonia, such as Zekerija Qazimi in Gjilan and Rexhep Memishi in Skopje, who are also serving jail time for their own recruitment efforts and links to terrorist activities (Opinion.al, March 21, 2016). In addition to trying to change the religious landscape of majority Muslim populations across the country and the region, Balla seems to have been connected with those attempting to undertake terrorist attacks. In November 2016, four individuals were arrested for planning an attack on Israel’s national football team while they were in Shkoder, Albania’s second largest city, to play against Albania for a World Cup qualifying match. One of the four individuals was listed as a supporter of Balla by Albanian security services (KlanTV, November 13, 2016).
Going back to his arrest in 2014, authorities revealed that Balla and other followers possessed large amounts of weapons and ammunition, in addition to takfiri literature and other materials translated into Albanian (Gazeta Shqip, March 12, 2014). In the trial, Balla claimed responsibility for his role in producing and translating takfiri literature that propagates religious divides and promotes the elimination of relations between Christians and Muslims in a country where mixed marriages between different religious communities are often the norm (Shekulli, March 12, 2014). On numerous occasions, including during sermons and court sessions, he has claimed that religious harmony is a political trap to “undermine and control” Muslims ”(Gazeta Tema, March 13, 2014) and that KMSH is “protecting Christians and Jews and openly attacking Muslims” (VizionPlus, March 8, 2016). Different from other preachers in the region who often made their sermons available via online videos, Balla chose to make public only sound recordings of his sermons, which are still accessible and assembled in montage videos by his adherents. [5]
Continued Engagement from Prison
Even though Balla has now been imprisoned for over four years, his influence has continued to echo among his followers, who repeatedly call for his release and, on social media, elevate his image to that of a martyr. [6] On numerous occasions he has also been able to publish handwritten notes on various online media sites, confronting accusations against him and criticizing the state for openly “waging a war against Islam” (Albeu, April 14, 2014). Over the years, his handwritten notes criticizing the country’s pro-European political establishment have been made public on other religious sites. Most recently, one of these letters spoke out against the country’s LGBT activists for organizing the 7th annual pride parade, which is increasingly gaining traction in the country (Dinjiteti.com, April).
In 2015, Balla and his network were accused of facilitating, from the confines of their prison cells, travel arrangements for foreign fighters. That same year, Italian authorities sounded alarm bells to Albanian officials based on the alleged connection a group of Albanian jihadists living in Italy had with Balla and Hysa, who were still managing to guide their moves from prison cells (Zeri.info, January 22, 2015). Even though similar communications with active jihadists are much rarer, Balla continues to provide ideological guidance to his followers by translating material through handwritten notes that eventually appear either on IS-supported Telegram channels or even in more mainstream forums. [7]
Conclusions
The story of Genci Balla is not unique: other imams and religious leaders across the region have been involved in similar activities to inspire their followers to pursue jihad. Besides promoting a takfiri version of Islam, Balla imposed a strict code of conduct among his followers regarding their everyday lives. Even before his arrest, Balla was considered a teacher for his followers, often dictating the do’s and don’ts of intimate parts of daily life. This is often the role that many imams across the region are currently taking, without raising the suspicions of security agencies. In the past, many were accused of links to terrorism, but then quickly released due to lack of evidence. As radical preachers became more conscious of the level of scrutiny they were under, the majority of imams abandoned promoting participation in conflicts or engaging in direct confrontation with state authorities. Instead, they are continuing to indoctrinate followers on questions pertaining to social issues and everyday relations between different communities. Meanwhile, Balla, imprisoned for his role in aiding IS, continues to have his image elevated among followers, who call for his release and regard him as a martyr protecting a jihadist cause.
In the meantime, Albania and other countries across the region are shifting to softer approaches in responding to violent extremism and terrorism. Neighboring Kosovo, for instance, is a leading example in the adoption and implementation of a comprehensive strategy to counter the radicalization that leads to terrorism. As part of the country’s efforts to counter violent extremism, the Kosovo government is in the process of vetting imams from the officially recognized Kosovo’s Muslim Union (BIK) to serve as key actors in deradicalization programs in prison environments (Balkan Insight, May 11). Although the move was welcomed by most international partners, skeptics voiced reservations, as the head of BIK, Naim Ternava, has often been criticized for his role in allowing radical preachers to promote their views, inspiring violent actions (Express.com, June 27, 2014) & (Insajderi.com, August 21). [NOTE: LAST LINK DID NOT WORK] The involvement of imams in deradicalization and reintegration programs for terrorism inmates remains a contentious subject, as they risk promoting the same social norms that oppose democratic values. Furthermore, these imams lack the credibility among followers, who see them as collaborators with state authorities.
This is one of the vulnerabilities that Balla seems to be exploiting from his prison cell. Anecdotal evidence gathered for this piece suggests that Balla often undermines imams that have been assigned by relevant authorities to serve Muslim practitioners in prison, while also still playing a vital role in keeping communication networks alive among followers and other inmates. In light of a Muslim community that is increasingly vulnerable to external political influences, individuals such as Genci Balla will continue to set the narrative and define the spiritual leadership Muslim practitioners will seek, including in prison environments.
Ebi Spahiu is a human rights activist and an analyst of Western Balkans and Central Asian affairs, currently based in Tirana, Albania. She has worked in a number of capacities for UN agencies, including UNICEF and UN Women in Kyrgyzstan, the OSCE Presence in Albania and other nonprofit organizations in the Western Balkans and Central Asia.
NOTES
[1] Azinovic, Vlado. A Waiting Game: Assessing and Responding to the Threats of Returning Foreign Fighters in the Western Balkans. Regional Cooperation Council (RCC), Sarajevo, 2017, Available at: https://www.rcc.int/pubs/54/a-waiting-game-assessing-and-responding-to-the-threat-from-returning-foreign-fighters-in-the-western-balkans
[2] Ibid.
[3] Own author’s attendance of trial sessions.
[4] Own author’s conversations with local leaders.
[5] Teuhidi.com, assembled takfiri literature in Albanian, available at: https://www.teuhidi.com/faqjaere/index.php?option=com_phocadownload&view=category&id=6:libra-te-ndryshem&Itemid=25 & The Truth About Imams’ Arrests: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8i9VYD6dbM
[6] Ibid
[7] Recent material released by SinteIntel
[8] Teuhidi.com, assembled takfiri literature in Albanian, available at: https://www.teuhidi.com/faqjaere/index.php?option=com_phocadownload&view=category&id=6:libra-te-ndryshem&Itemid=25 & The Truth About Imams’ Arrests: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8i9VYD6dbM