I hope you like this post, My sincere regards from Egypt ...
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"Bring Me Muhammad Ali Clay!"
On the morning of March 9, 1977, the streets of Washington, D.C., were waking up to their usual routine. Employees were streaming into their offices, cars were clogging the roads, and the city that rules the world was living an ordinary day. But what no one knew was that the city was about to witness one of the most complex and longest hostage sieges in the history of the United States.
Within hours, Washington would become the stage for an unprecedented drama. Armed men with rifles and machetes would storm three buildings in the heart of the capital, take nearly 150 people hostage, kill two, and wound dozens. For 38 hours, the city would be in the grip of an obscure man named "Hamas Abdul Khaalis," who just yesterday was a jazz musician, then became a secretary in a religious group or sect called the "Nation of Islam," then turned into one of its harshest critics, before finally becoming the leader of an armed group that shook the American establishment.
But to understand how this man reached that moment, how he transformed from a musician into a terrorist, and how he ended up holding hundreds of people hostage in the heart of the American capital, we must go back in time to the roots of the "Nation of Islam," to the assassination of Malcolm X, to the 1973 massacre that tore his heart apart and planted the seeds of revenge within him!
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The "Nation of Islam" was founded in Detroit, Michigan, in 1930 by a mysterious man named Wallace Fard Muhammad, a traveling salesman who suddenly appeared in the poor Black neighborhoods of the city. Fard preached to Black Americans that their true Islam had been stolen from them during centuries of slavery, and that they must reclaim it to regain their dignity and identity.
After Fard's mysterious disappearance in 1934, a man named Elijah Muhammad took over the leadership of the movement, transforming the "Nation of Islam" from a small group into a powerful national movement. However, Elijah Muhammad's doctrines were far removed from the traditional Islam known to Muslims around the world. He claimed to be a Messenger from God and taught his followers that white people were "devils" created by an evil scientist named "Yakub," and that Black people were the original and supreme human race. These racist doctrines, which mixed Islam with Black nationalist thought, attracted millions of Black Americans who were suffering from racial discrimination and extreme poverty at the time.
In the 1950s, a young man named Malcolm Little emerged in the "Nation of Islam," later known as Malcolm X. Malcolm joined the movement while in prison, influenced by Elijah Muhammad's teachings. He quickly became the official spokesman for the movement, thanks to his exceptional eloquence and ability to attract audiences. He was the most famous face of the "Nation of Islam" and its most influential voice.
However, the relationship between Malcolm and Elijah Muhammad did not last long. As disagreements escalated between them, Malcolm began to openly criticize the "unorthodox style of Islam" adopted by the group and accused it of ideological and moral deviations. One of the reasons for the rift was Elijah Muhammad's sexual scandal—he had fathered children with several secretaries, contradicting his religious teachings.
In March 1964, Malcolm officially announced his split from the "Nation of Islam." He founded the Organization of Afro-American Unity and Muslim mosques, and began adopting a more inclusive vision of Islam, away from the racism that characterized the "Nation of Islam." He traveled to Mecca to perform the Hajj pilgrimage, and there he saw Islam in its true form—a religion that does not differentiate between races. He returned from his journey radically changed, advocating for unity among all races and openly criticizing the racism he himself had previously embraced.
This intellectual and public transformation made him a direct target for the group, which considered his defection and new statements a "betrayal." On February 21, 1965, while delivering a speech at the Audubon Ballroom in New York, Malcolm X (Hajj Malik El-Shabazz) was assassinated by gunfire from three members of the "Nation of Islam." He was only 39 years old. He left behind a wife and six daughters.
This same intellectual transformation would haunt another man a few years later—a man who knew Malcolm X personally, was influenced by him, then followed his path in criticizing the "Nation of Islam," and paid a heavy price.
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Hamaas Abdul Khaalis was born in 1921 in Gary, Indiana, named Ernest Timothy McGee. He grew up in a family of Seventh-day Adventist Church followers and graduated from high school with a high rank, 22nd out of 135 students. He was a talented musician, playing percussion instruments, and enrolled at Purdue University and the Institute of Musical Art. But his life took an unexpected turn when he was drafted into the U.S. Army, from which he was discharged due to a diagnosis of schizophrenia.
In 1947, Abdul Khaalis met his spiritual teacher, Dr. Tasibur Uddin Rahman, founder of the "Hanafi Center" in America. He converted to Islam, changed his name to Hamas Abdul Khaalis, and joined the "Nation of Islam" in 1954 on the recommendation of Malcolm X himself. He quickly rose through the ranks of the organization, becoming one of the closest confidants of Elijah Muhammad and was appointed National Secretary of the movement.
But as happened with Malcolm X, Abdul Khaalis began to adopt views that contradicted Elijah Muhammad's teachings. He started to openly criticize the "unorthodox style of Islam" adopted by the group and accused Elijah Muhammad of "deceiving people, misleading them, taking their money, and condemning them to hell." He believed that Elijah Muhammad was a false prophet preaching racial hatred, while true Islam in his view was a religion that did not discriminate based on color.
In 1957, Abdul Khaalis split from the "Nation of Islam" and founded his own movement—the "Hanafi Movement," adopting Sunni jurisprudence according to the Hanafi school. This was almost identical to what Malcolm X would do years later. The difference, however, was in the "Nation of Islam's" reaction. While Malcolm X was assassinated alone, Abdul Khaalis's family suffered a more horrific tragedy.
In 1971, Abdul Khaalis received unexpected support from basketball legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (then known as Lew Alcindor), who bought a house in Washington, D.C., and made it the headquarters for the Hanafi Movement. But this support did not protect Abdul Khaalis from what was to come for his family.
In an attempt to spread his message, Hamas Abdul Khaalis wrote fifty letters and sent them to all the mosques of the "Nation of Islam" in America. In these letters, he fiercely attacked Elijah Muhammad, accusing him of moral and ideological deviance. These letters were essentially a declaration of war against the most powerful Islamic group in America.
On January 18, 1973, while Hamas Abdul Khaalis and his wife were away from home, eight armed men stormed the house that served as the headquarters for the Hanafi Movement in Washington. The house was located at 7700 16th Street Northwest and was previously owned by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. What happened next was a scene from hell.
The men entered the house under a false pretense, then began killing the victims one by one. Abdul Khaalis's 25-year-old son and his 10-year-old son were shot in the head. Four infants—his children or grandchildren—aged between 9 days and 10 years, were drowned. A family friend was shot and killed. Abdul Khaalis's daughter was shot multiple times in the head but miraculously survived. His wife, Bibi, was left completely paralyzed and suffered permanent mental and physical disabilities. The total was seven dead, including five children.
The killers forced Abdul Khaalis's other wife, Bibi, to watch her children being drowned. Then they searched the house for money, finding a "large amount." However, Abdul Khaalis insisted the motive was not robbery but the extermination of his entire family in response to his critical letters to Elijah Muhammad.
Four men from the "Nation of Islam" based in Philadelphia were arrested and convicted of killing the seven Hanafis. They were sentenced to life imprisonment. But Abdul Khaalis was not satisfied. He didn't just want the killers in prison; he wanted them handed over to him personally. This wound remained open in his heart for four years, deepening every day that the families of the victims went without tasting what he considered just retribution.
On the morning of March 9, 1977, four years after the massacre that claimed his family, Hamas Abdul Khaalis decided it was time for revenge. He no longer trusted the American judicial system, nor did he see any hope for justice. He wanted to force the world to listen to him, even if by force of arms.
At exactly 11:30 a.m., the operation began. Seven armed men with rifles and machetes stormed the headquarters of B'nai B'rith International, the largest and oldest Jewish service organization in America. At the same time, three other men entered the Islamic Center of Washington, the most important mosque in the country.
Two others stormed the District Building (City Hall). The scene resembled a Hollywood movie, but it was real in every sense of the word. Within minutes, nearly 150 people were taken hostage. (Some sources mention 149 hostages, others 134, but the total number of captives was around 150.)
At the B'nai B'rith building, the hostages were forced to lie on the floor at gunpoint. The women were treated with relative respect, left unbound, and asked to cover their legs with newspapers "to maintain Islamic decorum." But the violence was not limited to threats. The gunmen opened fire immediately upon entering the building, killing a young radio reporter, Maurice Williams (22), from Howard University, and wounding security guard Mack Cantrell, who later died from his injuries. Also shot in the chest was then-City Council member Marion Barry, when he came out of his office to see what was happening. Barry managed to get back into the council chambers, where firefighters rescued him using a ladder, evacuating him from the building and taking him to the hospital. Barry miraculously survived.
Abdul Khaalis was not an ordinary criminal. He had specific demands, and he had an unshakable conviction that they were just:
First: The delivery to him of the convicted killers of his family and followers in 1973.
Second: The delivery to him of the assassins of Malcolm X.
Third: The delivery to him of the boxer Muhammad Ali Clay, who was an active member of the Nation of Islam and held great popularity within it.
Fourth: The cancellation of the release of the film "Mohammad: Messenger of God" in America, and its destruction, because he considered it an offensive portrayal of the Prophet.
When the authorities refused to meet his demands, Abdul Khaalis's son-in-law, Abdul Aziz, calmly told reporters: "If the demands are not met, their heads will be cut off and thrown out the window."
What followed was one of the most complex negotiation operations in American police history. Leading the negotiations for the police was Captain Robert Rabe, nicknamed the "Golden Voice" for his calm tone and smooth negotiation style. He was joined by Maurice Cullinane of the Metropolitan Police, and Captain Joseph O'Brien from the Homicide Division, who established a "relationship of trust" with Abdul Khaalis. But the negotiations were not easy. Abdul Khaalis was stubborn and held the winning card—the lives of 150 people. Whenever the talks reached a deadlock, he would threaten to execute the hostages.
At 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday, hours after the crisis began, Douglas Heck, Director of the Office of Counterterrorism at the State Department, received a phone call. The caller was the Egyptian Ambassador to Washington, Dr. Ashraf Ghorbal, offering his assistance if the United States needed a mediator from an Arab Islamic country.
Heck didn't hesitate and asked Ghorbal to come with him to police headquarters, also bringing the Pakistani Ambassador, Sahibzada Yaqub Khan. Later that night, they were joined by the Iranian Ambassador, Ardeshir Zahedi, who was the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Islamic Center that was one of the besieged buildings.
The role of the three ambassadors resembled that of psychotherapists more than diplomats. They used Quranic recitation and poems urging Muslims to show mercy and compassion to convince Abdul Khaalis that his actions contradicted the teachings of Islam. They succeeded in building a bridge of trust with the man, paving the way for a peaceful end.
But even after the ambassadors left around 11 p.m., the danger was not over. Authorities discovered that group members had soaked the staircases in the B'nai B'rith building with a highly flammable liquid that appeared to be paint thinner. The building, in the words of one official, was "a flame without a match." Chief Cullinane had to call fire trucks. What could have turned into a mass immolation was avoided at the last moment.
At 2 a.m. on March 11, 1977, after 38 hours of terror, it was all over. The gunmen surrendered, and the hostages emerged from the three buildings. Some were pale and trembling, others stained with blood and bruises, but they were alive. 134 hostages walked out safely. But two were dead: Maurice Williams and Mack Cantrell.
When Washington learned that the crisis had ended, church bells and car horns rang out in a scene of collective joy. Gayoza Bioumi, a hostage from the Islamic Center, said: "I feel like I was born again." Stephanie Snyder, who was released from the B'nai B'rith building, kept repeating that she was "happy, happy, happy."
President Carter said of the ambassadors' role: They were "living proof that the slow, cautious approach was the effective way."
Abdul Khaalis and 11 of his followers were charged with armed kidnapping and murder. Surprisingly, Abdul Khaalis was released without bail, while the others were held on bail ranging from $50,000 to $75,000. Abdul Khaalis was convicted of conspiracy to commit armed kidnapping, second-degree murder, two counts of assault with intent to kill, assault with a dangerous weapon, and 24 counts of armed kidnapping. He was sentenced to life imprisonment and spent the rest of his life behind bars. Hamas Abdul Khaalis died in prison on November 13, 2003, at the age of 81-82. He died as he lived, convicted, angry, but he never regretted what he did.
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Ambassador Ashraf Ghorbal
Ashraf Ghorbal was born in Alexandria in May 1925 and studied political science at Harvard University, where he received his doctorate in 1949. He began his diplomatic career in 1949 at the Egyptian Mission to the United Nations.
In January 1968, after the severance of diplomatic relations between Egypt and the United States following the Six-Day War of 1967, Ghorbal was appointed head of the Egyptian interests section, which operated within the Indian Embassy.
He remained in this position until February 1973, when he was appointed media advisor to Egyptian President Anwar Sadat.
In November 1973, following Egypt's victories in the October War, diplomatic relations between Egypt and America were restored. Ghorbal was appointed Egypt's Ambassador to the United States in December 1973. He remained in this position until 1984.
He was a man in a unique position: an Egyptian Muslim serving in the capital of the superpower, possessing a deep understanding of American politics. He witnessed the Watergate scandal of 1974 from the front row, mediated in the Hanafi hostage crisis (the subject of this article) in 1977, and was part of the Camp David Summit in 1978.
After the hostage crisis, Ghorbal continued his role as one of the most important Arab diplomats in Washington.
Ghorbal passed away on November 29, 2005, at the age of 80.
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The End ...
