The Battalion of the Martyr Abdullah Azzam is an Al-Qaeda-affiliated terrorist group founded to oppose Middle Eastern governments that the group deems to be aligned with the West (such as the Mubarak government in Egypt), the Zionist movement, and non-Muslim forces in the Middle East. Indeed, statements made by the group affirm that their targets are "Zionists", "Crusaders", and "Sinai martyrs" killed under the rule of "the Egyptian tyrant" Hosni Mubarak. The group's stated objectives are to eliminate the "filth of the Jews and the corruption of the grandchildren of the apes and pigs" from "the Muslim nation" and to avenge the "crimes of the worldwide evil powers." Believed to be an offshoot of the Tawhid family of terrorist organizations (like many other al-Qaeda affiliated terrorist organizations), the group is named after Abdullah Azzam, a mentor of Osama bin Laden and the "godfather of the modern jihad movement." <P><br /><br />Attacks perpetrated or claimed by the Battalion of the Martyr Abdullah Azzam usually involve a large tourist target in Egypt, relatively sophisticated bombs, meticulous planning, and coordinated or simultaneous attacks. The group is responsible for at least two devastating attacks on tourist sites in the Sinai Peninsula. <br /><p><br />Several Sinai resorts at Taba, Ra's al-Sultan, and Nuwayba were hit in October 2004 by bomb attacks at approximately the same time, resulting in the death of 34 people, mostly Israelis and Egyptians. The Battalion of the Martyr Abdullah Azzam claimed responsibility for all of these attacks.<br /><p><br /><br />Nearly a year later, in July 2005, a series of car bombs was detonated in the Egyptian tourist site of Sharm al-Shaykh, killing 88 and wounding 200. Responsibility for the attack was contested between the al-Qaeda Organization in the Levant and Egypt (an alias of the Battalion of the Martyr Abdullah Azzam) and the Mujahedi Masr (Holy Warriors of Egypt). Given the similarities between this attack and the October 2004 attack known to be executed by the Battalion of the Martyr Abdullah Azzam, it is unlikely that the Mujahedi Masr was the perpetrator in this case.<br /><p>