Eritrea – Islam in Eritrea

CUL

Justification:
Eritrea’s religious make-up constitutes approximately 45% Christians and 55% Muslims. All Eritrean Muslims follow Sunni Islam. The emergence of Islam in present day Eritrea can be traced back to the time of the Prophet Muhammed. However, many of Eritrea’s present day ethnicities trace their Islamic roots to the Ottoman and Egyptian empires where most of those people who followed pagan rituals or were Christian converted to Islam.
Eritrean Muslims who were discriminated and marginalized on the sole basis of their faith initiated Eritrea’s independence movement. In direct reaction to Ethiopian Christian monarch, Haile Selassie, the Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF) was born. The ELF consisted of mainly Eritrean Muslims, but later Eritrean Christians joined the organization, as there was a growing discontent amongst Eritrean Christian intellectuals. Throughout Eritrea’s independence movement, the ELF as well as the EPLF (present day PFDJ) maintained strong ties to Arab countries and their respective leadership. Not only does Islam play an essential role in the spiritual direction of all Eritrean Muslims, but the religion also carries considerable weight in the education and judicative aspects of their lives. The Islamic leaders and followers in Eritrea help foster the close ties Eritrea has with the rest of the Muslim world. Furthermore, elements of Islamic fundamentalism have been a growing concern that the Eritrean government has been able to manage effectively.

Stakeholder size: Approximately 2.2 million Eritreans follow Islamic faith. The majority of these people are in Eritrea while the remaining people in the Diaspora can be found mainly in Sudan, Saudi Arabia, and then spread thinly between North America, Europe and Australia.

Area of influence:
a.) Geographic area – Throughout Eritrea, especially in the lowlands
b.) Population subsets – Lowland Tigrinya people are predominantly Muslim. Most of Eritrea’s remaining ethnicities, including, Tigre, Blen, Rashaida, Saho, Nara, Afar consist of largely Islam followers.

Description of Organization
a.) Who are the leaders?
Sheikh Salim Ibrahim – Chief Administrator of the Office of the Mufti
Sheikh Al-Amin Osman Al-Amin – Mufti of Eritrea

b.) How does one gain influence in the group?
**Pending Info**

c.) What issues do they care about?
The Islamic faith in Eritrea not only controls the religious direction of Eritrean Muslims, but influences matters of education and law (regarding Eritrean Muslims). Sharia courts as well as waaf councils exist within Eritrea’s legal framework. Eritrea’s leadership has also reinstated hajj and umra committees. The Islamic leadership’s close ties to their Arab colleagues have ensured the expansion of Islamic-oriented education and the building of numerous mosques throughout Eritrea. Many madrassa (Islamic schools) have been built with the help of outside funding.

d.) What does organizational structure look like?
**Pending Info**

Financial Resources (if applicable)
**Pending**