The Austrian authorities have issued a book that includes a recent report on the terrorist Brotherhood in Europe, and monitors its structures and movements, and calls for stopping its funding.
The book, which Al-Ain Al-Akhbariya received a printed copy of on the sidelines of the Vienna Forum on 28 Oct, includes a report prepared by the experts Lorenzo Vidino and Sergio Altuna, and comes in 279 pages of medium size.
The book was issued by the Documentation Center for Political Islam, which was established by the Austrian government in the summer of 2020 to monitor, analyze and document the movements of the MB and other political Islam organizations and discuss ways to combat them.
The book includes four chapters and deals with the structures and movements of the MB in 12 European countries, the most important of which are Austria, Britain, Germany, France, Belgium and Denmark. The book also deals with the financing mechanisms of the terrorist group.
“While there are differences from country to country, the original seed of the MB’s presence in Europe was conceived between the 60s and 80s by Middle Eastern students at European universities and a few senior MB members,” the book states.
“What began as an unexpected and temporary presence in Europe, over time has become stable and has expanded significantly. Today, every major European country is home to a small network of individuals and organizations with varying degrees of connection to the MB,” the book continues
The book also states that the number of active MB members in each environment linked to the MB in Europe is relatively small (a little over a thousand in large countries such as France, and less than a hundred in smaller countries), but that each has the ability to influence and mobilize a much larger number of allies and immigrants.
“Moreover, MB circles have created many public organizations that, while controlled by the same small number of activists, aim to project an image of broad support and representation,” the book adds.
Umbrella organization
Since the late 80s, leaders of the European Network of the MB have sought to make an official pan-European structure, and in 1989, they created the Federation of Islamic Organizations in Europe (FIOE), based in Brussels, which turned into an umbrella organization, according to the book, which clearly states that “every member of this union is Part of the MB network in Europe.
Over time, the union, which changed its name in 2020 to the Council of European Muslims, has created several specialized entities to serve specific goals, such as the European Institute for Human Sciences and the European Center for Fatwa.
“An important organization close to the European MB’s environment is the International Islamic Relief Organization, ” the book says.
“Islamic Relief vehemently denies any connection to the MB, but its organizational and personal ties to the European Community’s network are extensive,” it adds.
“Organizations belonging to the MB’s milieux in different countries regularly collect donations and promote Islamic relief, and individuals who belong to the MB’s milieux often run the local branches of the relief organization,” the book adds.
According to the book, the various entities across Europe and the many organizations created by each MB environment on the continent form one group that is a fairly coherent “network”, while each environment of the MB operates in a particular country, and its personal, organizational and financial relations with the MB environments in other countries are widespread.
“The circular nature of the network cannot be overstated, as it is run by a relatively small group (a few hundred individuals in total) of men (and a small but growing number of women, mostly wives or daughters of senior leaders) who know each other, constituting a tight-knit network has a disproportionate influence on organized Islam in Europe,” the book adds.
Divergent Finance
The book identifies 4 sources of funding for the MB in Europe, the most important of which are the donations of the MB’s elements, foreign donations from countries such as Qatar and Turkey, the profits of a network of companies run by the MB in Europe, and finally aid from European governments in the framework of programs to support integration and communication with Islamic communities.
The book concludes with a number of recommendations, the first of which is to stop European countries’ funding of the group within the framework of various programs and any governmental cooperation with the MB, as well as the need to gather full knowledge of the group’s activities, movements and structures in order to confront the MB better and more efficiently.
On Thursday, October 28, the Vienna Forum resulted in an alliance of 4 European countries aimed at confronting political Islam, especially the terrorist MB.
The activities of the Vienna Forum to Combat Political Islam took place in the Austrian capital on Thursday, October 28, in the presence of a group of European officials and experts, and with the participation of Al-Ain Al-Akhbariya .
The forum aimed at an international exchange at the political and professional level on the ideologies, networks, actors and activities of political Islam in Europe, as well as how to combat them.
