A charity established by the son of Abdullah Azzam, an al-Qaida founder and mentor of Usama bin Laden, to honor his father’s legacy is currently soliciting donations online in support of Gaza as war persists in the region following the October 7 attacks against Israel.
Azzam Aid has begun soliciting donations through its website and accounts on popular social media platforms using PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and bank accounts.
Azzam Aid has begun soliciting donations through its website and accounts on popular social media platforms using PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and bank accounts.
February 2024 Gaza food distribution campaign by Azzam Aid. Source: X.
Originally registered in Türkiye in 2020, Azzam Aid recently registered as a non-profit charity in Ontario, Canada, under a different name, according to its website.
Accessed on April 9, 2024, the “About Us” page on Azzam Aid’s website describes the charity as an independent NGO registered in Canada.
While the charity reports to have been established "to alleviate suffering" and provide "relief and emergency response," its publications and online solicitations of support invoke the legacy and extremist teachings of Azzam.
Azzam's trademark slogan – “Jihad and the rifle alone. No negotiations, no conferences, and no dialogues'' – has inspired global terrorists and radical groups around the world.
Azzam's trademark slogan – “Jihad and the rifle alone. No negotiations, no conferences, and no dialogues'' – has inspired global terrorists and radical groups around the world.
An October 2023 social media post by Azzam Aid featuring one of Abdullah Azzam’s sermons titled, “The more severe the adversity, the closer the victory.” Source: X.
April 2021 social media post by Azzam Aid featuring a sermon by Abdullah Azzam. Source: X.
The Man Behind the NGO
The Azzam Aid charity is led by Huthaifa Abdullah Azzam, the son of Abdullah Azzam, who at a young age worked alongside his father and bin Laden in Afghanistan.
According to a previous description of the charity that appeared on its social media accounts, Huthaifa Azzam served as the manager of Azzam Aid. While the reference of his ties to the charity has since been deleted, Huthaifa Azzam has continued to report on Azzam Aid’s work.
Last month, in a social media post, Huthaifa Azzam updated his followers on the charity’s projects on the ground in Gaza. Azzam said the charity has been in the northern Gaza Strip since the conflict began, trying to garner the “support of the [Muslim] nation.”
The Azzam Aid charity is led by Huthaifa Abdullah Azzam, the son of Abdullah Azzam, who at a young age worked alongside his father and bin Laden in Afghanistan.
According to a previous description of the charity that appeared on its social media accounts, Huthaifa Azzam served as the manager of Azzam Aid. While the reference of his ties to the charity has since been deleted, Huthaifa Azzam has continued to report on Azzam Aid’s work.
Last month, in a social media post, Huthaifa Azzam updated his followers on the charity’s projects on the ground in Gaza. Azzam said the charity has been in the northern Gaza Strip since the conflict began, trying to garner the “support of the [Muslim] nation.”
A March 2024 social media post by Huthaifa Azzam, with the caption: “Your brothers in the Azzam volunteer relief team have been present in the northern Gaza Strip since the first day of the Al-Aqsa Flood battle, and are mobilizing the support of the [Muslim] nation. We haven’t stopped for a moment since the start of the battle, and we have been working night and day to stabilize our people in the steadfast north of the Strip and thwart the project of forced displacement of the residents of the Gaza Strip.”
Huthaifa Azzam lived with his father in Afghanistan and Pakistan until his father’s death in 1989. In a 2006 interview with CNN that profiled Huthaifa and his father as “the first family of jihad,” he detailed his travels to Iraq to fight against the U.S. military presence and to help preserve his father’s message.
He traveled to Syria in 2015, where he was seen with Ahrar al-Sham, a coalition of Islamists allied at the time with the al-Nusra Front against the Assad regime. From 2013 until 2016 al-Nusra Front was the official Syrian affiliate of al-Qaida.
He traveled to Syria in 2015, where he was seen with Ahrar al-Sham, a coalition of Islamists allied at the time with the al-Nusra Front against the Assad regime. From 2013 until 2016 al-Nusra Front was the official Syrian affiliate of al-Qaida.
Huthaifa Azzam (center) pictured at an Ahram al-Sham event in Syria alongside the al-Qaida-aligned group’s leaders. Source: YouTube.
More recently, Huthaifa Azzam has voiced support for Hamas. In a January post on social media, he claimed that Hamas “was greatly influenced by the ideas” of his father, adding that the goal of its jihad was to “establish an Islamic state in all of Palestine.”
January 2024 social media post by Huthaifa Azzam, with the caption: The Hamas movement was greatly influenced by the ideas of Abdullah Azzam. The meaning of jihad in the eyes of Hamas is special because it aims to protect the Muslim person, Islamic culture, and holy places (especially Al-Aqsa Mosque). The goal of jihad is not to establish a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders, but rather to liberate the entire ‘occupied land’ from the hand of Zionist Jews and establish an Islamic state in all of Palestine.” Source: X.
In October, days after the Hamas attacks on Israel, Huthaifa Azzam praised the group as “men of action” rather than “men of words.” In the same social media post, he called on his followers to support the group, stating: “Whoever has a rifle or [money for] the price of a rifle, let him give it to Hamas, as it is worthy of being used wherever God commands."
An October 2023 social media post by Huthaifa Azzam, with the caption: “Hamas and its military arm, the Izz Al-Din Al-Qassam Brigades, gained the trust of the entire [Muslim] nation, not just the trust of the people of Palestine. Hamas and its men were never men of words, but rather men of action. Whoever has a rifle or [money for] the price of a rifle, let him give it to Hamas, as it is worthy of being used wherever God commands." Source: X.
The Father of Modern Jihad
Often credited as a mentor of Usama bin Laden, Abdullah Azzam was a Palestinian scholar whose teachings helped inspire al-Qaida. He worked with bin Laden to establish Maktab al-Khadamat, the precursor organization to al-Qaida, according to the 9/11 Commission report that investigated the terrorist attacks.
Before he was killed in a car bombing in Pakistan in 1989, Azzam played a key role in al-Qaida’s efforts to recruit fighters for “a caravan of jihad” in Afghanistan.
After his death, Azzam’s teachings inspired terrorists to attack the West, including the individuals responsible for the 2009 suicide bombing of a CIA base in Afghanistan and the 2010 Times Square bombing attempt. Both terrorists said they were inspired by Azzam and his beliefs.
Azzam Aid is one of several fundraising campaigns tied to Hamas that have been soliciting funds in support of Gaza since the October 7 attacks.
Often credited as a mentor of Usama bin Laden, Abdullah Azzam was a Palestinian scholar whose teachings helped inspire al-Qaida. He worked with bin Laden to establish Maktab al-Khadamat, the precursor organization to al-Qaida, according to the 9/11 Commission report that investigated the terrorist attacks.
Before he was killed in a car bombing in Pakistan in 1989, Azzam played a key role in al-Qaida’s efforts to recruit fighters for “a caravan of jihad” in Afghanistan.
After his death, Azzam’s teachings inspired terrorists to attack the West, including the individuals responsible for the 2009 suicide bombing of a CIA base in Afghanistan and the 2010 Times Square bombing attempt. Both terrorists said they were inspired by Azzam and his beliefs.
Azzam Aid is one of several fundraising campaigns tied to Hamas that have been soliciting funds in support of Gaza since the October 7 attacks.
