Alija Izetbegović

Born

1925-08-08

Died

2003-10-19

Birthplace

Šamac, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Biography

Alija Izetbegović, the former president of Bosnia and Herzegovina and a Muslim thinker, was born in 1925 in the town of Bosanski Šamac, Bosnia and Herzegovina. He spent his life in Sarajevo, where his family had migrated when he was a child. He studied agriculture and law, and worked as a lawyer. Having received his early Islamic upbringing from his family, Izetbegović joined the Young Muslims organization in his youth and remained active within the Islamic movement throughout his life. Because of his ideas, he was imprisoned by the communist Yugoslavian regime between 1946–1949 and 1983–1988. After the dissolution of Yugoslavia, Izetbegović founded the Party of Democratic Action along with his friends and was elected President of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1990. During his presidency, he served as the commander-in-chief during the Bosnian War, which turned into a profound tragedy for Bosnian Muslims. Following the war, which ended with the Dayton Agreement, Izetbegović continued his political career as the President of Bosnia and Herzegovina until he voluntarily resigned from the presidency in 2000. He passed away in 2003.