How did the Brotherhood exploit the umbrella of freedoms to "softly infiltrate" Europe?

 

The Muslim Brotherhood in Europe

How did the Brotherhood exploit the umbrella of freedoms to "softly infiltrate" Europe?

Amid pending legislative amendments, Europe faces a new chapter in scrutiny and review of the work of networks linked to the Muslim Brotherhood. This follows a wave of investigations and political and security actions launched from Paris to several other capitals over the past period.

Western security reports have revealed coordinated methods of exploiting the spaces of judicial and political freedom in European countries to establish associations, think tanks, charitable foundations, and media platforms that provide legal cover for advocacy and political activities that extend across borders. This has prompted parliaments and governments to revisit laws to confront what is described as the Muslim Brotherhood 's "soft infiltration" within European civil and institutional spheres.

Speaking to Sky News Arabia, politicians and experts described this shift as "a turning point in Europe's approach to the Muslim Brotherhood, after the spaces of freedom provided by democratic laws became a fertile environment for the group to expand under the banner of charitable and human rights work, while at the same time, it was establishing, at the core, an intellectual and organizational system with a clear political character, threatening European regimes themselves."

The Muslim Brotherhood's work in Europe

In dozens of European countries, the Muslim Brotherhood operated under the umbrella of charitable associations , cultural and research centers, and youth organizations. This legal framework granted these entities the ability to establish themselves, open bank accounts, receive local and European grants, and organize ostensibly civil public events.

Weeks ago, French President Emmanuel Macron announced  an expansion of the sanctions list imposed on the Muslim Brotherhood in France and approved new measures to freeze funds and donations.
However, the most influential step in Paris was the announcement that a draft law would be prepared by the end of the summer, to be implemented before the end of 2025, aiming to close legal loopholes exploited by groups "seeking to impose a political-religious project that contradicts the principles of the Republic."

According to the French newspaper Le Monde, "the Muslim Brotherhood's influence has grown in marginalized neighborhoods, through the establishment of advocacy and charitable networks used as tools for soft infiltration within French society. This has prompted the Élysée Palace to describe the situation as a real threat to national cohesion."

The Vienna-based Center for Middle East and North Africa Studies stated that "the group has benefited for decades from a gray area. It is neither outright banned in Europe nor declared a terrorist group, but it exploits civil liberties to deepen its influence."

The center explained that in many European countries, laws allow the easy establishment of charitable associations, cultural centers , religious schools, and youth organizations, as long as their activities appear "civic or service-oriented, and the legal framework limits the authorities' ability to exercise direct oversight."

Macron realized their danger.

Alexandre Del Val, political analyst and researcher at the French Center for Foreign and Political Affairs, believes that "Macron is the first politician in France to clearly express his anti-Muslim Brotherhood stance, having understood that the group seeks to use its organization as a tool to divide the country."
In an interview with Sky News Arabia, Del Val explained that "the Muslim Brotherhood has been able to exploit European laws based on values ​​of tolerance and human rights to serve its ideological agenda," warning that "the laws enacted to combat racism are now being used to justify a trend that contradicts the principles of democracy itself."

He pointed out that "the moral turmoil in Europe has enabled the Brotherhood to exploit the liberal legal system in France, Britain, and elsewhere, which grants indirect legal privileges to any party portrayed as a victim of history or discrimination."

The French researcher asserted that "the Brotherhood has used slogans against racism and religious discrimination to consolidate its institutional influence within European societies. This approach makes many local administrations and judges in Europe fearful of being accused of racism, and so they issue rulings in favor of Brotherhood entities, citing anti-discrimination or social integration laws. Consequently, the group often wins lawsuits against municipalities or local governments in this manner."

He emphasized that "the Brotherhood is adept at exploiting the modern legal system, from anti-racism legislation to positive integration laws and minority protection laws, to present itself as a persecuted minority, not as an ideological movement seeking dominance." He added that they "present themselves as representatives of all Muslims, so that the group is treated as a persecuted entity like other ethnic or sexual minorities, while their true goal is to impose a separatist agenda that exploits the West's tolerance to undermine it from within."

Del Val continued, "The values ​​of tolerance in Europe have become a tool used by extremists to advance their intolerant agenda. We are literally destroying ourselves with our laws. It is a painful paradox, as tolerance has become the weapon that paves the way for extremism to triumph from within our own legal system."

significant decline

Jassim Mohammed, head of the European Centre for Counterterrorism and Intelligence Studies, explained that "the Muslim Brotherhood has extensive experience operating within Europe, dating back to the 1940s, enabling it to exploit European freedoms and laws to its advantage."

"The group is well aware of how to evade the scrutiny of security and intelligence agencies , " Mohammed told Sky News Arabia. " It operates behind facades that appear legal and legitimate, exploiting the concepts of freedom of expression and civil society to promote its ideas and ideology and build parallel societies within European countries. There is abundant evidence that the group uses these facades to provide support to extremist groups and contributes to the dissemination of extremist rhetoric online under the guise of freedom of expression."

On the other hand, he stressed that the past five years have witnessed a significant decline in the group's activities, as a result of tightened surveillance by European intelligence agencies.