Ali Sadr al-Din al-Bayanoun, the Muslim Brotherhood Leader, Returns To Syria After 40 Years In Exile
Ali Sadr al-Din al-Bayanouni, the former leader of the Muslim Brotherhood in Syria, has returned to his country after more than forty years living in exile, most of which he spent in London since the 1980s following a major dispute between the group and the ousted Syrian regime.
Due to his membership of the Muslim Brotherhood, Bayanouni was imprisoned from 1975 to 1977. After his time in prison, he emerged to become the deputy leader of the Brotherhood in 1977. He left Syria two years later and eventually settled in Jordan. He reportedly remained in Jordan for 20 years before moving to the UK in 2000 after being expelled by Jordanian authorities.
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Bayanouni, one of the most prominent figures in the movement, served as the group’s leader from 1996 to 2010 before handing over the position to Mohammed Riad al-Shakfa.
His return reportedly took place quietly through Aleppo International Airport, where he was received by relatives, close friends and supporters. According to people close to him, his homecoming was in line with conditions set by the Syrian authorities, which allow only “individual” returns, separate from any collective or political activity that could revive the Brotherhood’s presence inside the country.
Notably, in 2000, discussions between the regime and the Muslim Brotherhood opened the possibility of exile returns—conditional on the abolition of Article 48, which prescribes the death penalty for Brotherhood membership, general amnesty, and limited re-engagement, especially through charitable activities.
However, some reports deny the claim of the brotherhood leader return to Syria.
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The brotherhood was first established in 1928 in Egypt by Hasan al-Banna and soon spread to other Arab countries. It was a political and social movement seeking to create an Islamic state and revitalize society by encouraging ordinary Muslims to live more dedicated religious lives.
