How Does Israel Read the Intellectual and Political Project of Dr. Hassan al-Turabi ?

By: Ambassador Rashad Faraj al-Tayyib

This paper presents an analytical reading of the book published by the Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies at Tel Aviv University, entitled “Al-Turabi: The Spokesman of Radical Islam”, authored by the Israeli researcher and diplomat Amir Weisbrod, and published in 2013.

The paper focuses on deconstructing the Israeli perception of Dr. Hassan al-Turabi’s personality and intellectual project, as well as the broader intellectual and political project of the Sudanese Islamic Movement.

It analyzes Israeli assessments of the perceived threat and influence of this project, not only within the Sudanese context, but also at the wider regional and intellectual levels.

The paper is based on the hypothesis that Israeli academic interest in al-Turabi reflects an early awareness of the structural transformations he introduced into the discourse and practice of contemporary political Islam.

First: The Institutional and Research Framework of the Study
The book under review was published by the Moshe Dayan Center, one of Israel’s most prominent strategic think tanks, widely regarded as a key research arm supporting Israeli decision-makers with in-depth studies on the Arab and Islamic worlds.

The importance of the book lies not only in its subject matter but also in the professional background of its author.

Amir Weisbrod combines academic research with diplomatic experience, having served in the Israeli diplomatic corps, including a post as Israel’s media attaché in Jordan.

This overlap between academic inquiry and diplomatic practice lends the study a long-term strategic analytical character rather than a purely descriptive academic approach.

This, in turn, explains its focus on the deep intellectual structures of al-Turabi’s project, rather than on transient political events.

Second: Analytical Methodology and the Foundations of the Israeli Reading
Weisbrod adopts a composite analytical methodology that combines textual analysis of al-Turabi’s intellectual writings, examination of his political practices, and assessment of their regional and international impact.

He does not approach al-Turabi as a local political leader, but rather as a model that can be replicated within the global framework of political Islam.

The study proceeds from a central Israeli assumption: that the real threat does not lie in short-lived, confrontational Islamist movements, but in political Islam capable of producing a coherent intellectual discourse, adapting it to the modern state, and gaining both domestic and international legitimacy.

Third: Hassan al-Turabi as a “Non-Typical” Islamic Model
Weisbrod portrays al-Turabi as a complex figure combining traditional Islamic jurisprudential training, Western legal education, and political pragmatism.

According to the study, this combination constitutes the primary source of Israeli concern, as it produces a form of political Islam capable of engaging elites—not merely mass constituencies—and of operating within state institutions rather than outside them.

The book highlights al-Turabi’s reconfiguration of key concepts such as shura (consultation), legitimacy, and sovereignty, enabling the construction of a modern state with an Islamic reference framework without falling into the model of a closed, theocratic state.

From an Israeli perspective, this model threatens the intellectual foundations of the existing regional order—not through direct confrontation, but by offering competing and legitimate alternatives.

Fourth: Jurisprudential Renewal as a Strategic Tool
Weisbrod interprets al-Turabi’s reformist views on issues such as women, freedoms, and ijtihad as part of a conscious strategy aimed at shielding the Islamic project from Western criticism and re-presenting it in a form suitable for circulation within international academic and political spheres.

These positions are not seen as a liberal inclination but rather as a sophisticated use of modern tools in the service of a long-term ideological project.

Fifth: The State, Power, and the Source of Israeli Anxiety
The book devotes particular attention to al-Turabi’s experience in governance, considering the transition of political Islam from opposition to state power as the most dangerous phase in its evolution.

According to this analysis, once Islamists become state actors and men of government, they transform into sovereign entities that are difficult to isolate or contain through security measures.

Weisbrod also examines the complex relationship between al-Turabi and the military establishment, viewing his alliance with it as functional and temporary, reflecting a deep understanding of the logic of power and increasing the replicability of this model in other Arab and Islamic contexts.

Sixth: Al-Turabi and Israel — A Long-Term Structural Threat
The book does not classify al-Turabi as a direct military adversary of Israel, but rather as a long-term intellectual and structural threat.

His project, according to Israeli assessment, contributes to reshaping Islamic political consciousness and linking the conflict with Israel to an extended civilizational context, rather than to a transient political circumstance.

Conclusion
The paper concludes that the publication of this book in 2013 by the Moshe Dayan Center, authored by a seasoned Israeli diplomat such as Amir Weisbrod, reflects an early Israeli realization that the true challenge lies not in individuals or fleeting political experiences, but in ideas capable of endurance and reproduction.

From this perspective, Hassan al-Turabi—despite the interruption of his political career—has remained a presence in Israeli research consciousness as one of the most formidable theorists of political Islam in the modern era.

Shortlink: https://sudanhorizon.com/?p=10328