Zekerija Qazimi—Kosovo’s Imprisoned Imam and Ideological Mentor to Albanian Jihadists Fighting With Islamic State
Zekerija Qazimi—Kosovo’s Imprisoned Imam and Ideological Mentor to Albanian Jihadists Fighting With Islamic State
Since August 2014, more than 100 individuals have been arrested or questioned by the security services in Kosovo, including a number of leading religious and political figures. These arrests stem from charges and allegations of recruiting young Albanian men and women from Kosovo to join the Islamic State’s jihad, as well as inciting religious hatred (VOA, September 17, 2014). Even though these operations gained tremendous praise from Western leaders, many of those detained have since been released, including Prishtina’s Grand Mosque imam Shefqet Krasniqi, due to insufficient evidence of their direct involvement in terrorist activities (Gazeta Express [Prishtina], January 22). However, in early March, seven were indicted for “inciting others to commit or participate in terrorist activities, and for securing funds and other material resources,” according to a statement by Kosovo’s prosecutor’s office. Zekerija Qazimi, the imam of El-Kuddus mosque in Gjilan, was among those arrested on August 14 and is now one of the seven charged with terrorism (Balkan Insight [Prishtina], March 3). He was reportedly hiding in the mountains when police forces were searching the building where El Kuddus was located (Bota Sot [Zurich], August 14, 2014). Qazimi faces a sentence of up to 15 years in prison for his direct connections as a mentor to Lavdrim Muhaxheri and Ridvan Haqifi, leading Albanian jihadists who are fighting with the Islamic State. These three have inspired hundreds of other ethnic Albanians from Kosovo, Albania and Macedonia to join the Islamic State in the Middle East. [1]
Little is reported by local Kosovar media outlets and Facebook posts about Qazimi’s life, family and educational background. According to the police statement released upon his arrest, Qazimi was born in 1980, and is a native of Gjilan (Indeks Online, August 14, 2014). In addition, several other accounts attempting to expose al-Qaeda’s early ties to Balkan religious militant leaders describe Qazimi as an alumnus of al-Azhar in Egypt, where he was first introduced to other religious militants and leading radical movements around the world (American Center for Democracy, August 22, 2014). According to the Kosovar prosecutor’s claims, Qazimi held several lectures on the importance of jihad at the “Islamic Youth” NGO in Kaçanik and El-Kuddus mosque in Gjilan. [2]
Following Qazimi’s arrest, El-Kuddus’ jamaat (mosque worshippers) quickly reached out to their followers and state authorities via an appeal letter requesting his immediate release. The jamaat claimed that the imam’s arrest was a clear violation of human rights and that “Qazimi is the voice of thousands of followers in Kosovo” (Facebook, August 16, 2014). In this appeal letter, the jamaat declared the Qazimi’s innocence and their disappointment with the government, which ordered these operations without sufficient proof for him to be incriminated. According to the letter, Qazimi had been well aware of his accusations even prior to police operations in his mosque:
Before being detained, Qazimi’s Facebook posts and YouTube messages openly called for followers to join the jihad in Syria, and praised the war that other jihadists had already started against the regime of Bashar al-Assad. According to Balkan Insight, in one of his YouTube messages from 2013 he said that “The blood of the kaffir [nonbelievers] is our sweetest drink.” But according to Visar Duriqi, a Prishtina-based journalist who has monitored these messages posted online, several videos had already been taken down by jamaat aides when he was arrested. [3] Other earlier videos released under Qazimi’s name even encouraged incest, calling for men to be married with their cousins, a cultural taboo to Albanians (Explore Univers, November 5, 2012). At the moment, the majority of the published videos on YouTube and Facebook under Qazimi’s account are previous sermons focusing on the importance of prayer (Facebook, August 13, 2014). However, Qazimi’s messages that inspire religious divides, openly call for followers not to celebrate New Year’s Eve or other Christian religious holidays not connected to Islam and reject ethnic Albanian Christian historical figures, such as Mother Teresa, as national symbols are still prevalent across social media in Albania and Kosovo (Telegrafi [Prishtina], August 14, 2014). For countries where religious harmony has been historically symbolized by celebrating other religious holidays, like Albania and Kosovo, this new rhetoric is creating conditions for some followers to reject members of other faiths and their social significance
Bashkësia Islame e Kosovës (BIK—Islamic Union of Kosovo) representatives in Gjilan stated that they often monitored Qazimi’s sermons, but the mosque itself did not have any working relationship with the religious institution (Bota Sot [Zurich], August 14, 2014). BIK is an officially recognized representative organization of Sunni Islam communities in Kosovo. It has a wide reach and credibility with Muslim communities throughout the country through muftiats (territory under the supervision of a mufti) and local mosques that deliver messages and religious teachings. However, leading BIK officials and religious leaders have been the target of similar charges and, according to experts’ observations, these religious leaders have a well-organized network and communication system. [4] Many moderate former BIK religious leaders have been allegedly forced out of BIK’s leadership in the past few years. [5]
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, in a speech to anti-terrorism coalition members in the United Kingdom in January, included Kosovo in the list of countries where several recruitment cells had been destroyed following security operations coordinated among partners and allies (Gazeta Express [Prishtina], January 22). Despite Kosovo’s strong security and legal efforts to curb these groups of individuals, many have been freed due to insufficient evidence. Even though passports have been confiscated and public calls to support extremist groups have been limited, their followers’ base has increased due to the lack of public credibility of the Kosovo government’s operations. Kosovar security experts believe that these freed imams have resumed their activities and have returned to their followers with a stronger conviction that they are innocent. “They are well aware of the legal framework Kosovo has adopted and are careful in undertaking any illegal activities publicly,” says Abit Hoxha from the Kosovo Center for Security Studies in Prishtina. [6]
Zekerija Qazimi is considered to be a key religious leader who has personally mentored and organized trips for several jihadists fighting in Syria and Iraq, including Lavdrim Muhaxheri (reportedly killed by Kurdish forces), Ridvan Haqifi (reportedly the current leader of the ethnic Albanians fighting with the Islamic State) and Patriot Matoshi (reportedly killed as a jihadist at the age of 19), among many others. [7] Even though Qazimi’s direct relations with BIK are still unclear, many in Kosovo blame BIK leaders and other religious figures for creating an environment and religious rhetoric that inspires religious divides and encourages followers to reject the legitimacy of state authorities. Even though this in and of itself may not be a punishable crime, it is creating a psychological mindset that isolates followers and distances them from their current social settings. “We have to keep in mind that not only Qazimi, but a lot of other imams play an important role even in the indirect recruitment of volunteers by idealizing the sanctity of this war and by creating the psychological preconditions that this war requires,” says Hoxha. [8]
Ebi Spahiu is an independent analyst of Central Asian and Western Balkan Affairs, focusing on gender and religious extremism.
Notes
1. An email interview with Visar Duriqi, a Prishtina-based journalist, on February 24, 2015.
2. Special Prosecution of the Republic of Kosovo, Raised Indictment Against Seven Persons for Criminal Offenses Related to Terrorism, March 2, 2015 https://www.psh-ks.net/?page=2,8,709
3. Interview with Duriqi, op. cit.
4. An email interview with Abit Hoxha of the Kosovo Center for Security Studies on February 23, 2015.
5. Interview with Duriqi, op. cit.
6. Interview with Hoxha, op. cit.
7. An email interview with Visar Duriqi on January 23, 2015.
8. Interview with Hoxha, op. cit.
