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Jules Yusuf Jammal () is said to have been a Syrian military officer who killed himself in a suicide attack during the Suez Crisis, in Egypt.
According to a narrative prevailing in the Arab world, Jammal rammed his boat into a French warship, thereby sinking the ship. This story is given credence in some sources. However, as related in the 1967 book Six days in June: Israel's fight for survival by Washington correspondent and historian Robert J. Donovan, the tale is false but gained traction in the Arab world after being aired on Radio Cairo. It is cited as an example of the "potency of the to propagate myths as beyond dispute."
It is unclear which ship he is supposed to have sunk. One source calls the ship at issue the "Ocean liner Jean D’Arc" Jules Jammal: Syrian History and another the "French warship, Jeanne D’Arc". Middle East analysis by Sami Moubayed - Reflections on May 6 , Mideastviews.com; accessed 15 June 2015. There was a French cruiser Jeanne d'Arc in service at that time, but it was decommissioned in 1964 rather than sunk. Some sources name the battleship Jean Bart,, which refers to the Jean Bart as a "cruiser" which did see action in the Suez Canal, but that vessel was also not sunk; it was decommissioned in 1961.
Arab film director Gassan Abdullah announced plans to make a film about Jammal in 2008, since he was regarded as a hero for many in Syria and Egypt for his Arab nationalism. "Rising above odds to resurrect leaders", gulfnews.com; accessed 15 June 2015.
The Grand Mufti of Syria, Ahmad Badreddin Hassoun, mentioned Jammal in a speech aimed at Western countries, warning that Syrians and Lebanon would engage in suicide bomb attacks against Europe and the United States if they bombed Syria during the 2011 Syrian uprising. He cited Jammal as an example of a non-Muslim Syrian who carried out a suicide bomb martyrdom attack on the west, and warned that non-Muslims would assist Syria in those attacks. Mufti of Syria Ahmad Badr Al-Din Hassoun Threatens to Activate Suicide Bombers in Europe and the U.S., memri.org; accessed 15 June 2015.
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