Al-Najjar Gang

The al-Najjar Clan, previously known as the El Mezdawi Tribe is a multicultural organized crime group active in the United States, namely in cities such as San Fierro, Los Santos, and to a lesser extent even New York City. The clique is currently entitled after Muhammad al-Najjar after occupying the throne in the year 2000. The organization's presence in the United States was revealed after a senior breakdown of the clan from around 2002 until 2005, wherein over over 40 members were arrested. Their charges were money laundering and arms trafficking.
In the '80s and the '90s, much of the gang's membership consisted of mostly career criminals whose roots traced back to countries in the Arab world, such as Libya, Egypt, Algeria and Iraq. However, after Muhammad al-Najjar's takeover of the enterprise, other nationalities were introduced into the the faction's structure.
Currently, al-Najjar's main domain is San Fierro, whereas Los Santos contains two other al-Najjar-affiliated cliques, according to law enforcement. Additionally, Bosnian and Turkish henchmen of the group are often spotted in New York City.
==History==
===Origins=== 
Walid El Mezdawi, born in Tripoli, Libya, immigrated to the United States subsequent to World War II. El Mezdawi was a young Libyan and had transferred much of his family along with him. At this point in time, El Mezdawi lacked means of employment and was quick to turn to crime, along with several other muslim brothers.
Many immigrants originating from the Arab world struggled with finding jobs. In contradiction to their religion, many of them turned to the criminal side. This led to many otherwise pious muslims Americanizing into career criminals, under El Mezdawi's wing.
El Mezdawi had not yet indulged in arms trafficking. Instead, El Mezdawi and his gang exercised in vehicle theft, petty shakedowns and robberies. It was around 1960 when El Mezdawi's clique had turned into a serious and dangerous network of career criminals. Due to El Mezdawi's bitterness and distaste to anything that wasn't Arabic, the structure exclusively embraced Arabic men.
===El Mezdawi's regime===
El Mezdawi's now impious and sinful laborers below him had now triggered their involvement in the heroin trade, which Walid El Mezdawi was quick to rid of. He banned the drug trade from his organization to prevent drug addiction in or around his outfit, and generally for "finding it a dirty bus to get on", as close friends of El Mezdawi claimed. Additionally, El Mezdawi and his cohorts often attempted to uphold religion within the circles one way or the other, though many of the soldiers failed to take it seriously.
In the 1980s, after the foundation of terrorist organizations such as al-Qaeda, the future Taliban and other muslim extremist warriors (referred to as "the mujahideen"), El Mezdawi began importing firearms illegally through his contacts in the middle-east. Afghani warriors whose guns were used in the Soviet War were subsequent to their usage sent into the United States of America through boats.
Khalid al-Furayji, an Iraqi insurgent, served as a mediator between the El Mezdawi Clan and the Islamic militant organizations. After hitting the '90s, the Islamic Organization of Uzbekistan and the East Turkestan Islamic Movement began aiding El Mezdawi in their endeavors. Walid El Mezdawi often imitated the mujahideen behavior, and assumed their ideas and views.
In 1994, a considerably hefty amount of loyalists were captured in the countryside of Los Santos, and were arrested on firearm trafficking charges, as well as money laundering.
Respectively, the firearm trafficking business of the "Arab mafia" had become eye-catching for law enforcement. Law enforcement zoomed in on El Mezdawi, and only a year after the major bust, the Arab mafia boss himself had been arrested. Media claimed that law enforcement stated that he "would never see broad daylight again."
El Mezdawi died in the year 2000, inside Mule Creek State Prison.
===The al-Najjar Clan===
Muhammad al-Najjar, former El Mezdawi-loyalist had assumed the throne. Due to the faction's history in and around Los Santos, he had decided to shift his gang in San Fierro's way. Five small-time crews remained in Los Santos, while two were newly formed in San Fierro.
Three crews were quick to be imprisoned as a result of further investigation by law enforcement. Two remained under the radar, even to this day forth in 2014.
Muhammad al-Najjar speedily detruded the organization's presence on law enforcement radars. San Fierro became al-Najjar's main domain after Walid's death. Los Santos-side crews became minor and inferior to the powerful San Fierro crews, though still vomited a significant sum of income yearly.
In 2007, Muhammad's son, Marouane, introduced non-Arabs into his Los Santos-based crew, which challenged El Mezdawi's former policy against it. Nonetheless, it was permitted due to the fact many LS crews had difficulty rounding up associates. The organization recruited Eastern Europeans and soldiers originating from Balkan countries, as well as Irish-Americans.
Marouane al-Najjar received prison time in 2011 after allegedly assaulting an Irish-American barber in Marina, and led to an outcry in the Los Santos ranks. Irish-American henchmen clashed with other ethnicities after al-Najjar's imprisonment, and blamed them for it. From within prison, al-Najjar requested his father to rid of the Irish-American associates. Following this, a number of corpses were found scattered across the city and were later identified as Irish-Americans with ties to the organisation, ranging from low-level associates to enforcers.
In the meantime, head figures such as Mehmet Niyaz, Faysal Zohouri, Bashir Zaman, Zakariya Sheikh Ali and Mahir Krvavac successfully and quietly operated in San Fierro.
Michael Sylaj and Nabil Zaafaran (Marouane al-Najjar's replacement) continued the day-to-day operations thereafter.
Anwar al-Zannati was appointed Muhammad's right hand man.
In present times, al-Najjar maintains a link to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS), the Jaish al-Muhajireen wal-Ansar (Mujahireen Bridage), and the Harakat Ahrar ash-Sham Al Islami (Ahrar ash-Sham, English: Islamic Movement of the Free Men of the Levant) in Syria. The aforementioned jihadist groupings, Islamic movements and mujahid cliques serve as merchandisers to al-Najjar.
==Historical and current membership of the al-Najjar Gang==
===Leadership===
====Boss====
* (?) - 2000 - Walid El Mezdawi — The organization's original founder and developer. El Mezdawi influenced a portion of Los Santos' casinos and night clubs. He died in prison after being imprisoned for firearm trafficking in 2000.
** Acting - 1995 - 2000 — Muhammad al-Najjar - Became acting boss after El Mezdawi's imprisonment surrounding 1995.
* 2000 - present — Muhammad al-Najjar - Current boss of the organization after Walid El Mezdawi's death behind bars in 2000.
====Liaisons====
* 2000 - present — Anwar al-Zannati - Egyptian-American extremist serving as al-Najjar's right hand man.
* 2003 - present — Mahir Krvavac - a Bosnian war veteran who surged through the ranks after permitting non-Arabs in the upper bracket.
* 2005 - present — Mehmet Niyaz - formerly a lieutenant and of Turkish descent. Now a mediator for a Turkish-Bosnian crew in Hashbury, San Fierro.
* 2007 - present — Marouane al-Najjar - son of Muhammad and liaison for his former "horse crew" in Santa Maria after release from prison.
===Lower bracket===
====Lieutenants====
* 2005 - present — Youssef Mansour - A small-time Algerian lieutenant based in Queens, New York City.
* 2005 - present — Faysal Zohouri - A loan-sharking Algerian operating in Garcia, San Fierro.
* 2009 - present — Bashir Zaman - No known information.
* 2011 - present — Nabil Zaafaran - Egyptian-American turned lieutenant after Marouane al-Najjar's imprisonment in 2011.
====Soldiers====
* 2007 - present — Leonid Milyukov
* 2011 - present — Samet Bayar
* 2013 - present — Denis Atlahovics - Latvian immigrant, recently arrived in the United States.
* 2014 - present — Oliver Ryang  Korean-American. No known information.
* 2014 - present — Nasser Aboushi
* 2014 - present — Iosif Sevchenko - Russian-Ukranian who immigrated to the United States during his childhood. No known information.
Note: law enforcement possesses only a select few names regarding soldiers. It is implied there are another 20 unnamed soldiers.
Category:Faction