Belgium has become an important center for the global Muslim Brotherhood
www.nefafoundation.org
The Muslim Brotherhood in Belgium
April 14, 2008
Steve Merley, Senior Analyst
The NEFA Foundation
[Belgium has become an important center for the global Muslim
Brotherhood in Europe. Since its origins in early student organizations,
the Belgian Brotherhood network has grown to include Hamas support
infrastructure and local Islamic groups that in turn are part of the
Federation of Islamic Organizations in Europe (FIOE), the global Muslim
Brotherhood umbrella group in Europe. Belgium also serves as the FIOE
national office. One individual, Bassem Hatahet, appears to be the most
important figure in the Belgian Muslim Brotherhood.]
BackgroundThe Global Muslim Brotherhood has been present in Europe since 1960 when Said
Ramadan, the grandson of Hassan Al-Banna, founded a mosque in Munich.
1 Since that time,Brotherhood organizations have been established in almost all of the EU countries, as well as
non-EU countries such as Russia and Turkey. Despite operating under other names, some of
the organizations in the larger countries are recognized as part of the global Muslim
Brotherhood. For example, the Union des Organizations Islamiques de France (UOIF) is
generally regarded as part of the Muslim Brotherhood in France. The network is also
becoming known in some of the smaller countries such as the Netherlands, where a recent
NEFA Foundation report detailed the activities of the Muslim Brotherhood in that country.
2Neighboring Belgium has also become an important center for the Muslim Brotherhood in
Europe. A 2002 report by the Intelligence Committee of the Belgian Parliament explained
how the Brotherhood operates in Belgium:
“The State Security Service has been following the activities of the InternationalMuslim Brotherhood in Belgium since 1982. The International Muslim
Brotherhood has had a clandestine structure for nearly 20 years. The identity
of the members is secret; they operate in the greatest discretion. They seek to
spread their ideology within the Islamic community of Belgium and they aim
in particular at the young people of the second and third generation of
immigrants. In Belgium as in other European countries, they try to take control
of the religious, social, and sports associations and establish themselves as
privileged interlocutors of the national authorities in order to manage Islamic
affairs. The Muslim Brotherhood assumes that the national authorities will be
pressed more and more to select Muslim leaders for such management and,
in this context, they try to insert within the representative bodies, individuals
influenced by their ideology. With this purpose, they were very actively
1
Ian Johnson, “How a Mosque for Ex-Nazis Became Center of Radical Islam,” The Wall StreetJournal
, July 12, 2005.2
Ron Sandee, “The Influence of the Muslim Brotherhood in the Netherlands,” The NEFAFoundation
, December 2007.Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
2involved in the electoral process to carry out the election of the members of
the chief body for the management of Islam in Belgium. Another aspect of
this strategy is to cause or maintain tensions by positing that a Muslim or
Islamic association is a victim of Western values, hence the affair over the
Muslim headscarf in public schools.“
3 4
Three factors have contributed to this development in Belgium. First, highconcentrations of Arabic-speaking, immigrant populations are a natural support base for the
Muslim Brotherhood and Belgium has such a large and concentrated Islamic population,
estimated at about 400,000, which is about 4% of the total population.
5 The majority of theseare Arabs, mainly Moroccans who have settled mostly in Brussels and the French-speaking
areas of the South with about half living in the Brussels conurbation. This has brought the
percentage of Muslims in Brussels to approximately 17%.
6 Second, the presence of importantEU institutions in Brussels is a logical attractor for any Muslim organization with aspirations for
achieving legitimacy at the Europe-wide level. Finally, the Belgian government is the only
European government not to have acted against the local branch of a Hamas fund-raising
organization, discussed later in this report, with strong ties to the Brotherhood, allowing it to
operate freely while branches in other countries were shut down or restricted.
In addition to these factors, the Belgian government appears to have created a power
vacuum in the Muslim community by ending its relationship with the Saudi-sponsored Islamic
Cultural Center of Brussels (ICCB). Founded in 1969, the ICCB is chaired by the Saudi
Ambassador and receives most of its funding from the Saudi Muslim World League. Until
1990, the ICCB had been treated by the Belgian government as the official representative of
the Muslim Community in Belgian and allowed it to recommend imams and teachers who
were then appointed by the government. However, opposition to the ICCB from the local
Muslim community forced an end to its role, and in 1994, the government appointed a
committee of 17 Muslims called "
De Belgische Moslim Executieve" in Dutch or "L'Exécutif desmusulmans de Belgique
" in French.7 The newly created organization took over the role of theICCB in appointing teachers and imams and served as the basis for an election at the end of
1998 that created the Representative Council of the Belgian Muslim Communities, the
officially recognized organization of Muslims in Belgium.
8 Although participants in theseorganizations were vetted by the Belgian government to weed out extremists, the jockeying
for power that took place attracted the interest of the Muslim Brotherhood, which may have
created organizations in order to further its legitimacy.
The environment resulting from these factors fostered the creation of a set ofinterrelated institutions that constitute the Muslim Brotherhood in Belgium today. The
remainder of this report will examine these institutions, paying special attention to their
structure, leadership, and public activities. It is important to note that almost none of the
organizations or individuals that are part of the global Muslim Brotherhood identify
3
Sénat et Chambre des Représentants de Belgique, Session De 2001-2002, Rapport d'activité2001 du Comité permanent de contrôle des services de renseignements et de sécurité, 19 Juillet
2002,
http://www.senate.be/www/?MIval=/publications/viewPubDoc&TID=33618007&LANG=fr.
4
http://www.comiteri.be/rapports/rapport2001def_nl.pdf.5 “
Islam & Muslims in Europe,” euro-islam.info/pages/belgium.html. face=ErasITC-Medium>6
http://www.briobrussel.be/assets/andere%20publicaties/en_35_bs4en.pdf7
“Islam in the Benelux Countries” in Shireen T. Hunter (ed.), Islam, Europe's Second Religion: TheNew Social, Cultural, and Political Landscape.
8
Lionel Panafit, “First for Islam in Belgium,” Le Monde Diplomatique, June 2000.Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
3themselves as such and no doubt, if asked, would deny any such connection. It is therefore
necessary to establish such a connection to the Muslim Brotherhood through analysis of
factors that include the history, affiliations, ideology, and backgrounds of the organizations
under question and their leaders. It should further be noted that this kind of structural analysis
is, by nature, limited and can only reveal the public structure of a Muslim Brotherhood
network. As the Belgian parliamentary report explained, the global Muslim Brotherhood
operates clandestinely and these clandestine structures are not normally accessible through
examination of the public record. In the U.S., for example, previously secret documents have
recently come to light that revealed an extensive and covert Muslim Brotherhood
infrastructure in that country.
9 Nevertheless, public information can provide a great deal ofuseful information about Brotherhood structures, leadership, and activities and can point the
way for investigators with access to non-public information.
Early Student OrganizationsMuslim Brotherhood networks often began as student and/or youth organizations
and Belgium was no exception. The earliest known Muslim Brotherhood organization was
the Association Humanitaire pour la Promotion de la Jeunesse (AHPJ).
10 Founded in May1988, the AHPJ was identified as one of a number of Muslim Brotherhood organizations
operating under other names by a July 2002 report of the Belgian parliamentary Intelligence
Committee.
11 Bassem Hatahet, later to become one of the most important individuals in theBelgian Muslim Brotherhood network, was elected as the Secretary of the AHPJ in January
1991, serving in that position until November 1996.
12 13 This report also says that the AHPJwas also operating under the name Union Islamique des Etudiants et de la Jeunesse en
Belgique (UIEJB), which Belgian records show was founded in April 1995 and dissolved in
February 2000.
14 15 In February 1999, Bassem Hatahet attended a conference in Kuwaitwhere he was described as being affiliated with the Islamic Students Union in Belgium, likely
the UIEJB.
16The Belgian parliamentary report describes the student organizations as:
“...also close to the Turkish movement ‘Milli Gorüs’. These associations publish
a newspaper which propagates anti-Western ideas and anti-Zionists. They
actively supported the Muslim cause in Afghanistan by the collection of funds
and the exchanges were made with the ‘Office of Afghan Mujahideen in
Brussels’. They organize camps where immigrants of second and third
generations are indoctrinated.”
Douglas Farah, Ron Sandee, and Josh Lefkowitz, “The Muslim Brotherhood in the United States:
9A Brief History,”
The NEFA Foundation, October 26, 2007.10
Résultat recherche Banque-Carrefour des Entreprises (BCE) et Registre du Commercehttp://kbo-bce-ps.mineco.fgov.be/ps/kbo_ps/kbo_search.jsp?VO=19F1B415.
11
Sénat et Chambre des Représentants de Belgique, Session De 2001-2002, Rapport d'activité2001 du Comité permanent de contrôle des services de renseignements et de sécurité, 19 Juillet
2002,
http://www.senate.be/www/?MIval=/publications/viewPubDoc&TID=33618007&LANG=fr.
12
Association humanitaire pour la Promotion de la Jeunesse "Transfert du Siege SocialModifications Aus Statuts Conseil D’Administration”, published December 12, 1991.
13
Association humanitaire pour la Promotion de la Jeunesse “Nominations-Exclusions TransfertDu Siege Social”, published November 28, 1996.
14
Résultat recherche Banque-Carrefour des Entreprises (BCE) et Registre du Commercehttp://kbo-bce-ps.mineco.fgov.be/ps/kbo_ps/kbo_search.jsp?VO=1B4AB0F5.
15
Résultat recherche Banque-Carrefour des Entreprises (BCE) et Registre du Commercehttp://kbo-bce-ps.mineco.fgov.be/ps/kbo_ps/kbo_search.jsp?VO=1B4AB0F1.
16
“Students Discuss Ways to Secure Detainees' Freedom,” Kuwait Times, February 24, 1999.Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
4Both the student organizations were registered at Brussels
addresses belonging to the charity Islamic Relief. A 1989 statement
in a leaflet attributed to the L'Association des étudiants
musulmans”, likely the above organization, is an early hint of the
modus operandi of the Muslim Brotherhood described in the
Belgian parliamentary report:
“This document concerns you, young immigrant. Today it’s
the headscarf, tomorrow forbidden to speak Arabic in
schools? Its time to act so that the authorities know we are
not toys.”
17 Islamic ReliefA Hamas Support Network in Verviers
Founding of Al-Aqsa Belgium
The next Belgian Muslim Brotherhood organization to be created was the Belgianbranch of the Al-Aqsa Foundation, founded in September 1993, and called Al-Aqsa
Humanitaire.
18 Al-Aqsa Belgium was, in turn, the Belgian branch of the parent organizationwhich had been established in Germany as the Al-Aqsa e.V in July 1991. Another Al-Aqsa
branch had been established in the Netherlands one month before the Belgian branch, and
all three organizations shared the same director, as well as having other board members in
common.
19 The declared purposes of Al-Aqsa Belgium included a series of humanitarianactivities on behalf of Palestinians inside and outside Belgium, including support of orphans,
formation of institutions in Palestine, and aiding other NGOs “who come to the assistance of
the Palestinian people.”
Al-Aqsa Belgium was first registered in Verviers, an economically distressedmunicipality of approximately 52,000 residents located in the Belgian province of Liège and
close to the cities of Aachen, Germany and Heerlen, the Netherlands where the Al-Aqsa
branches in those countries were first registered.
20 The registration address is a smallcommercial/residential building in the Hodimont area of Verviers, a former working-class
neighborhood that has become largely Islamic in character. The original signatories to the Al-
Aqsa Belgium registration and their self-provided occupations were Mahmoud Amr (political
scientist, journalist), Mohamed M. El Hajjaj (independent entrepreneur), Nimeh Amro
(cleaning lady), Bassem Hatahet (businessman), Abdallah Larhouasli (elementary
schoolteacher), Mostafa M. Busif (technician), and Ali Sonlu (technician).
17
Translated version of web.archive.org/web/20070612023207/users.skynet.be/suffrageuniversel/be/bemimu001.htm at
http://translate.google.com/translate?u=http://web.archive.org/web/20070612023207/users.sky
net.be/suffrage-universel/be/bemimu001.htm.
18
Belgian registration document, September 23, 1993.19
Ron Sandee, “The Influence of the Muslim Brotherhood in the Netherlands,” The NEFAFoundation
, December 2007.20
Belgian registration document, September 23, 1993.Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
5Mahmoud Amr Mahmoud Amr is a Jordanian who was
the former Chairman of the Al-Aqsa Foundation head office in
Aachen, Germany, as well as the former Chairman of the
Netherlands Al-Aqsa branch, now headed by Ali Sonlu. At the
time Al-Aqsa Belgium was created, Mr. Amr listed his profession
as “student,” and a telephone number of his belonged jointly to
an Arab student association in Aachen, as well as to a Belgian
students organization.
21 22 A 1993 interrogation of Hamasoperatives in Israel revealed that Mr. Amr was considered by them
Mahmoud Amrto be a “senior Hamas figure in Germany” who could be contacted through the Muslim
Brotherhood center.
23 The Thüringen State intelligence agency also reported that MahmoudAmr maintained “close relations” with the German Muslim Brotherhood organization.
24 Theinterrogation additionally revealed that Mr. Amr was in touch with both the Hamas
leadership in Germany, as well as Hamas elements in Jordan. Nimeh Amro, who listed her
address as the same as Mr. Amr’s, is probably a relative and was also one of the founders of
Al-Aqsa Netherlands.
Mohamed El Hajjaji is a Moroccan-born Belgian citizen who has been living inVerviers since at least 1993 where business records list inactive water/sewer construction and
restaurant businesses in his name.
25 A Danish research institute as well as the Belgian securityservices link Mostafa Busif to the Algerian GIA.
26Early Activities on Behalf of Hamas
There is no public record of the early activities of Al-Aqsa Belgium but although thedeclared purposes of the organization were humanitarian, by the mid 1990s evidence was
appearing that the Al-Aqsa Foundation as a whole was actually functioning as part of the
Hamas support infrastructure in Europe. In 1998, the German domestic security agency
reported that Al-Aqsa Germany “by means of donations for humanitarian aid in Palestine,
indirectly but effectively supports the aims of Hamas."
27 28 29
In 2001, all three branches of the Al-Aqsa Foundation, including Al-Aqsa Belgium,were listed as founding organizations of the Union of Good, a worldwide collection of
charities under the direction of global Muslim Brotherhood leader Sheikh Youssef
Qaradawi.
30 The list of Union of Good Trustees includes many prominent members of both21
Belgian registration document, September 23, 1993.22
RWTH Aachen - Humboldt-Haus-INCAS.http://www.rwthaachen.
de/aw/main/deutsch/Themen/Einrichtungen/Verwaltung/dezernat/humboldthaus/~
hnv/incas/?Vereine.html= (accessed June 2005, no longer available)
23
“A German Court Upholds a Government Decision to Outlaw the German office of the Al-AqsaCharitable Foundation,”
Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center at the Center for SpecialStudies
, December 2004.24
http://www.thueringen.de/de/publikationen/pic/pubdownload415.pdf.25
Worldbase , August 14, 2005, EL HAJJAJI MOHAMED and Worldbase, April 11, 2007,EL HAJJAJI MOHAMMED.
26
http://www.flwi.ugent.be/cie/documenten/jihad-dk.pdf.27
“Palestinian Charity in UK under Attack,” Financial Times, March 13, 199628
The Haifa District Court P 000272/03, Before his honour Court President Lindestraum, Date:12/01/2005 and Judges Y. Dar and A. Schiff.
29
Udo Ulfkotte, “Are Charitable Organizations in Germany Funding Terrorism?”, fromwww.faz.com, October 1, 2001.
30
“Implementing Organizations,”Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
6Hamas and the global Muslim Brotherhood.
31 In many European countries, the Union ofGood affiliate has connections to the local Muslim Brotherhood.
32 Although the Union ofGood, formerly known as the 101 Days Campaign, describes itself as a humanitarian
charitable organization, it has been described differently by an Israeli intelligence website:
“The Union of Good is composed of a combination of Hamas-affiliated,
designated extremist Islamic funds and foundations around the world. Most of
the money it transfers to the PA-administered territories eventually reaches
Hamas-affiliated institutions, helping Hamas establish itself as a potential
alternative to the Palestinian Authority and maintain a large-scale
infrastructure supporting terrorism, including suicide bombing attacks, as
clearly illustrated by original documents found by Israeli security forces.”
33In addition to its membership in the Union of Good, Al-Aqsa Foundation Chairman
Mahmoud Amr was listed as the registered contact for the 101 Days website, using
Mohamed El Hajjaji’s home as the registered address.
34Pressure Builds
Following the events of September 11, 2001, the Al-Aqsa Foundation’s head officewas coming under pressure in Germany over its connections to Hamas. In October 2001, the
Interior Minister for the German state of North-Rhine Westphalia said that Al-Aqsa was
known to be collecting funds on behalf of Hamas and warned the public against making
donations.
35 Around the same time, Mahmoud Amr was called a “Hamas functionary” by aState intelligence agency. In August 2002, the German government shut down Al-Aqsa in
Germany, seizing money and documents during searches of the group’s offices.
36 Also at thattime, the German Interior Minister said that Al-Aqsa raised money for suicide bombers and
their families in Israel, and that it transferred funds to social and humanitarian organizations in
the Palestinian territories that were connected to Hamas. German authorities reported
telephone calls in which a Hamas “cadre” was requesting assistance from Mahmoud Amr
following suicide bombings in Israel, as well as “numerous contacts” between Mr. Amr and
presumed Hamas functionaries.
37
Pressure on Al-Aqsa was also building in the Netherlands, where the generalintelligence and security intelligence service had reported in 2001 that Al-Aqsa Netherlands,
now chaired by Al-Aqsa Belgium founder Ali Sonlu, had been collecting money for Hamas
http://web.archive.org/web/20010811052333/http://www.interpal.org/web/organisations.htm.
عوضوم يا
- ريخلا فالتئا 31http://www.101days.org/arabic/modules.php?name=somnaa.
32
Ron Sandee, “The Influence of the Muslim Brotherhood in the Netherlands,” The NEFAFoundation
, December 2007.33
“The Union of Good,” Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center at the Center for SpecialStudies
, February 2005.34
“Whois Record for 101days.org,” whois.domaintools.com/101days.org. face=ErasITC-Medium>35
wdr.de - "Al-Aqsa": Unterstützt Aachener Verein die Hamas?:http://online.wdr.de/online/news2/spenden_al_aqsa/index.phtml.
36
“German Interior Minister Outlaws Arabic Charity Believed to Support to Hamas” [sic],Associated Press
, August 5, 2002.37
“Bundesinnenministerium legt neues Material gegen Al-Aqsa vor” Agence France Presse –German Dienstag, 27. Juli 2004.
Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
7since 1993.
38 On April 9, 2003, the Ministry of Interior announced a freeze on all financialactivities and assets of Al-Aqsa Netherlands stating that the organization was collecting
money for Hamas and/or organizations related to Hamas that support or develop terrorist
activities.
39 In May 2003, the U.S and British governments designated the Al-Aqsa Foundation,including both the Dutch and Belgian branches, as a terrorist organization and initiated
action to freeze the organization’s funds.
40 In its official statement, the U.S TreasuryDepartment cited action in Germany, Denmark, and the Netherlands as a basis for its
decision.
41 Also cited was the arrest of the head of the Yemeni office of Al-Aqsa, accused ofproviding support for both Hamas and Al-Qaida and of having close relations with the
German office. The U.S. described Mr. Amr at the time as “an active figure in Hamas.”
During the same time in which various governments were acting against the Al-Aqsa
Foundation, the Israeli government released a series of documents detailing connections
between the Foundation and Hamas, many of which implicated Al-Aqsa Belgium in the
support of Hamas. Several of these documents also implicate the U.K. charity known as
Interpal, whose chairman Abdul Rahaman Daya was one of the founders of Al-Aqsa
Netherlands.
42 43 This information indicates that the Al-Aqsa Foundation was part of a globalnetwork of charities that provided Hamas with between $10-15 million yearly. These
documents, along with other evidence implicating Al-Aqsa Belgium, include:
•
Documents from 2003 reveal correspondence between INTERPAL andHamas in the Palestinian town of Jenin. In the correspondence, Hamas
thanked Interpal for 12,000 pounds sterling, 4,000 of which came from an
Al Aqsa fund in Belgium.
•
In 2003, an Israeli court document reported that members of the Hamasmovement in Israel had been in regular and continuous contact with
activists in Interpal, Al Aqsa, the Union of the Good, and the World
Assembly of Moslem Youth in order to help these organizations transfer
funds to it’s accounts In Israel and the Territories. This contact included
telephone conversations, and correspondence via facsimile, mail and email.
The “activists” identified included Mahmoud Amru and Mahmoud
Hejazi (likely Mohamed M. El Hajjaji.)
44•
At the end of December 2003, a Belgian national identified as SaidMaduhi, was arrested as he attempted to enter the Gaza strip in the
company of a twelve-member delegation including Belgians as well as
38
“MIDDEN-OOSTEN Duitsland verbiedt islamitische al-Aqsa beweging (Samenvatting)”Algemeen Nederlands Persbureau ANP August 5, 2002
39
MinBZK.nl (uk) - Al-Aqsa balances frozen following AIVD investigation:http://www.minbzk.nl/uk/public_safety/press_releases/al_aqsa_balances.
40
“US, UK Designate Islamic Charity As Terrorist Organization,” Wall Street Journal, May 30,2003.
41
“Treasury Designates Al-Aqsa International Foundation as Financier of Terror,” U.S. TreasuryDepartment Press Release
, May 29, 2003.42
Ron Sandee, “The Influence of the Muslim Brotherhood in the Netherlands,” The NEFAFoundation
, December 2007.43
British Muslims Monthly Survey, March 1996, Vol. IV, No. 3.http://artsweb.bham.ac.uk/bmms/1996/03March96.html.
44
The Haifa District Court P 000272/03, Before his honour Court President Lindestraum, Date:12/01/2005 and Judges Y. Dar and A. Schiff.
Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
8other nationalities. Mr. Maduhi acknowledged meeting with members of
Hamas-affiliated charitable institutions in the Occupied Territories.
Maduhi, who headed the delegation, said that his arrival had been
coordinated by Muhammad Hejazi, director of the Al Aqsa Fund in
Belgium.
45•
In October 2004, the U.S. Treasury Department declared that Al-AqsaBelgium was “reportedly linked” to the Islamic African Relief Agency
(IARA). In addition to financing Al-Qaida, IARA allegedly moved funds to
the Palestinian territories for use in terrorist activities, serving as a conduit
to Hamas in one Western European country. In part, funds were raised
through IARA collection boxes marked "Allah" and “Israel” indicating that
the funds would be used for attacks against Israelis.
46•
In December 2004, a document was released describing the allocationof funds received from various foundations (including the Al-Aqsa
Charitable Foundation) in Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and
Denmark to Hamas’ Al-Islah Charitable Society in Bethlehem. The report
stated that the funds were allocated through the British Hamas-affiliated
Interpal fund, and that some of the funds were bound for Hamas
“terrorist-supportive infrastructure.“
47•
In December 2004, a letter was released from Mahmoud Amr to theHamas organization, the Orphan Care Society in Bethlehem. The letter
requests that the Society send Mohammed Hejjaji “a list of the orphans
who receive support funds from the institution” in order to assist Al-Aqsa
Germany with its legal problems in Germany.
48 The report adds, “Owingto the ban on the foundation’s activity in Germany, it maintained its
correspondence through the Belgium branch.”
In July 2002, the Belgian parliamentary Intelligence Committee report stated “Hamas
was present in Belgium via the organization Al-Aqsa in Verviers.”
49 However, despite theaction of other governments and the evidence against the organization cited above, the
Belgian government has taken no action to date against Al-Aqsa Belgium. A Belgian
parliamentary investigation concluded in January 2004 that there was insufficient evidence
to ban the activities of Al-Aqsa Belgium as had been done in German and the Netherlands.
5045 “
Belgian National Arrested on Suspicion of Connection to Outlawed Al Aqsa Fund,” IsraelMinistry of Foreign Affairs Press Release
, January 6, 2004.46
“Treasury Designates Global Network, Senior Officials of IARA for Supporting bin Laden,Others,” Treasury Department Press Release, October 13, 2004.
47 “
A German Court Upholds a Government Decision to Outlaw the German office of the Al-AqsaCharitable Foundation,”
Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center at the Center for SpecialStudies
, December 2004.48 “
A German Court Upholds a Government Decision to Outlaw the German office of the Al-AqsaCharitable Foundation,”
Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center at the Center for SpecialStudies
, December 2004.49
Sénat et Chambre des Représentants de Belgique, Session De 2001-2002, Rapport d'activité2001 du Comité permanent de contrôle des services de renseignements et de sécurité, 19 Juillet
2002,
http://www.senate.be/www/?MIval=/publications/viewPubDoc&TID=33618007&LANG=fr.
50
SÉANCE PLÉNIÈRE, www.dekamer.be/doc/CCRA/html/51/ac140.html. face=ErasITC-Medium color=#c0c0c0>Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
9Changes in the Organization
Beginning in 2001, Al-Aqsa Belgium underwent a series of organizational changes,
most likely due to the pressure facing the organization at that time. As of September 2002,
Bassem Hatahet, Nimeh Amro, and Mostafa Busif left the board, and Mohamed El Hajjaji took
over as President with Mr. Amr appointed as “Director of Projects.”
51 In 2005/2006, morechanges in Al-Aqsa Belgium took place:
52 53 54•
Mr. Amr and Ali Sonlu were removed from the board effectively,severing any official connection between Al-Aqsa Belgium and the
branches in Germany and the Netherlands.
•
A series of relatively unknown individuals were appointed as otherofficers.
•
The name of the organization was changed to AKSAHU.According to Belgian legal documents, this change was
made to avoid confusion with the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade,
but it is more likely that Al-Aqsa Belgium had problems
transferring funds, possibly as a result of the U.S.
designation.
55•
The registered office was changed to a new facility, locatedin a higher income neighborhood just outside the
Hodimont area of Verviers.
Al-Aqsa Verviers
As of February 2006, German police were reported to have been searching
for Mahmoud Amr who was supposed to have been deported as a result of his
activities; investigators assumed that he had fled to Brussels based on information
provided by his wife.
56Al-Aqsa Belgium today is the only remaining office of the Al-Aqsa Foundation that
continues in operation, testifying to the efficacy of creating redundant organizations, a wellknown
strategy of the global Muslim Brotherhood. Al-Aqsa Belgium maintains a highly
visible office in Sint-Jans-Molenbeek, an economically distressed municipality located in
Brussels that is home to a largely Muslim immigrant population
. The organization hasanother, less-visible office in Verviers which is marked only with a small piece of tape on the
entrance door and Mohamed El Hajjaji, likely the founder of Al-Aqsa Belgium, as well as other
51
A-Aqsa 4800 Verviers ANDERUNGEN AN DER BENENNUNG *** ANDERUNG DERSATZUNGEN *** ERNENNUNG(EN) *** VERWALTUNGSRAT *** VOLLMACHT
Veröffentlichung: 2002-11-14 N. 022510 Identification : 1619393 MWST oder
Unternehmensnummer: : 450818683
52
“Germany Deports Head of Al-Aqsa Charitable Society,” palestine-info.co.uk inhttp://www.jihadunspun.com/indexside_
external.php?article=102871&list=/home.php& accessed May 24, 2005 (no longer
available)
53
http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/tsv_pdf/2005/04/28/05062700.pdf.54
http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/tsv_pdf/2006/11/09/06169923.pdf.55
http://www.cass.be/tribunal_commerce/verviers/images/1306.0009.pdf.56
“Hamas-Helfer gesucht,” Focus, February 6, 2006.Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
10El Hajjaji family members are listed in Belgian phone records at that address. In November
2007, the front door of the Al-Aqsa Belgium office displayed a large poster advertising the
yearly meeting of the German Muslim Brotherhood organization, the Islamische
Gemeinschaft in Deutschland. As the remainder of this report will illustrate, Al-Aqsa Belgium
has organizational ties with other parts of the Belgian Muslim Brotherhood.
Islamic Complex in Verviers
Located one block down the street from a
prior Al-Aqsa Belgium address in Verviers is a
complex of Islamic facilities tied to Al-Aqsa Belgium
and the Belgian Muslim Brotherhood. A newspaper
article on the Hodimont complex traces its origin to
an unidentified Islamic association that had been in
operation since at least 1993.
57 According to thatarticle, the building housing the complex is an
abandoned tannery built in 1936 and bought in
2001 at a cost of 200,000 Euros, financed from the
proceeds of an inheritance that specified the
establishment of a mosque. As of January 2005,
Hodimont Complexthe 6000 m2 space was reported to include Internet facilities, a cafeteria, Arabic language
classes, youth and women’s committees, and a mosque that occupies the largest amount of
space.
58 The mosque may have been known earlier as Mosquée As Salem but is now calledMosquée Assahaba.
59 60 Attendance has been put at over 1,300 for Friday prayers of which25% were reported to be women. As of October 2007, Belgian documents refer to Yahya
Lamaalaoui as the Imam for the mosque, with an address down the street from addresses
associated with probable El Hajjaji family members.
61In addition to the mosque, there are at least two other organizations operating from
the complex. The first is known as the
Complex éducatif et Culturel Islamique de Verviers(CECIV). CECIV was established in May 2004 as a successor to the unidentified association
mentioned above and its constitution specifies Islamic youth and social purposes including
cultural, sport, educational, and festival activities.
62 The original officers of CECIV were HassanSwaid (President), Abdeljallil El Hajjaji, Driss El Hajjaji, Mohamed Darfoufi, and Mohamed
Arabate. Hassan Swaid is German with an address in Aachen, the former location for the
head office of the Al-Aqsa Foundation. In 2003, Swaid was listed as a member of the
Islamische Gemeinschaft in Deutschland, the Muslim Brotherhood organization in
57
..:: Minorités ::.., www.minorites.org/article.php?IDA=7588. face=ErasITC-Medium>58
Quand les musulmans voient grand - Lalibre.be,http://www.lalibre.be/article.phtml?id=10&subid=90&art_id=203947.
59
www.verviers.be/VIE PRATIQUE/Divershttp://web.archive.org/web/20050309124628/http://www.verviers.be/site_ville/vie_pratique/vp
_divers.html.
60
0865.470.622 Date de début: 26 mai 2004 Dénomination (sociale): Complexe Educatif CulturelIslamique de Verviers "Mosquée ASSAHABA" Dénomination en français, depuis 26 mai 2004
Abréviation: C.E.C.I.V. Dénomination en français, depuis 26 mai 2004***
61
http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/cgi_tsv/tsv_rech.pl?language=fr&btw=0865470622%20&liste=Li
ste.
62
http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/cgi_tsv/tsv_rech.pl?language=fr&btw=0865470622%20&liste=Li
ste .
Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
11Germany.
63 Mohamed Darfoufi, the Treasurer, was listed in 2006 as the Treasurer of Al-AqsaBelgium.
64 Abdeljallil and Driss El Hajjaji are probably members of Mohamed El Hajjaji’s family.In September of 2004, Hassan Swaid was replaced as President by Michael Privot, a
convert to Islam whose brother was reported to be the architect for the complex of buildings
housing the CECEIV.
65 66 Another CECIV leader in 2005 was Hajib El Hajjaji, probably also amember of the El Hajjaji and a Verviers City Councilman elected in 2006.
67 68 Hajib El Hajjajiwas also listed in 2006 as a member of the leadership of Comite Verviers Palestine (CVP) and
in May 2006, the CECIV complex hosted a pro-Palestinian conference organized by the CVP
featuring far-left Belgian journalist Michel Collon.
69 As of October 2007, other than HassanSwaid, all of the above individuals were still listed as members of the board of the CECIV.
70An archived web page from April 2006 promotes a conference hosted by CECIV that
featured Muslim Brotherhood figure Tariq Ramadan as the featured speaker.
71 Connectionsto the Muslim Brotherhood in Brussels are discussed later in this report.
The second organization operating from the complex is known as Essalem and was
founded on August 2, 1996 by Abdeljallil El Hajjaji, Khalid El Abbadi, and Hassan El Azzouzi.
72As of December 2005, Abdeljallil El Hajjaji and Hajib El Hajjaji were President and Vice
President respectively.
73 The declared purposes of the organization are similar to those ofCECIV with the addition of civil rights goals such as fighting xenophobia and racism, as well
as “Islamaphobia.”
The Muslim Brotherhood in Brussels
Federation of Islamic Organizations in Europe
There are a series of organizations in Belgium linked to the Federation of Islamic
Organizations in Europe (FIOE), a European umbrella group with “close connections” to the
Muslim Brotherhood.
74 The FIOE was founded in 1989 and is comprised of some 29 memberorganizations, the majority in the EU but also including non-EU countries such as Russian and
63
islam.de / Newsnational / "Deutscher islamwissenschaftlicher Ausschuss der Neumonde"(DIWAN) meldet: Dienstag, der 25. November 2003, ist Id al-Fitr, www.islam.de/1106.php.
face=ErasITC-Medium size=2>64
http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/cgi_tsv/tsv_rech.pl?language=fr&btw=0865470622%20&liste=Li
ste.
65
http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/cgi_tsv/tsv_rech.pl?language=fr&btw=0865470622%20&liste=Li
ste
66
Quand les musulmans voient grand - Lalibre.be,http://www.lalibre.be/article.phtml?id=10&subid=90&art_id=203947.
67
..:: Minorités ::.., www.minorites.org/article.php?IDA=7588. face=ErasITC-Medium>68
Hajib EL HAJJAJI - page d'accueil, www.hajib.be/Quisuisje.html. face=ErasITC-Medium>69
http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/tsv_pdf/2006/08/02/06126446.pdf.70
http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/cgi_tsv/tsv_rech.pl?language=fr&btw=0865470622%20&liste=Li
ste
71
Feuille blanche,http://web.archive.org/web/20060619154227/http://www.ceciv.be/solidarite.htm.
72
Essalem STATUTS, published September 26, 1996.73
http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/tsv_pdf/2006/01/13/06013979.pdf.74
Ian Johnson, “Islamic Group's Ties Reveal Europe's Challenge,” The Wall Street Journal,December 29, 2005.
Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
12Turkey.
75 76 Most of these member organizations have visible ties to the global MuslimBrotherhood, particularly those members in the larger European countries such as Germany,
France, and the U.K. where the FIOE members are generally acknowledged to represent the
Muslim Brotherhood. The FIOE website explains the organization as follows:
“The Federation of Islamic Organizations in Europe is a non-profitable
European organization, which provides a framework for its member
organizations and institutions. This framework aims to achieve the overall
common goals of serving Muslims in European societies. The FIOE also aims to
maintain the Muslim presence in Europe and to enhance and develop that
presence so that Islam is properly and accurately introduced.”
77The FIOE is organized administratively into departments such as Public Relations,
Dawa, and Eastern Europe.
78 The departments are run by FIOE officers who include some ofthe most important leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood in Europe, such as Ibrahim El-Zayat,
the head of the Muslim Brotherhood organization in Germany known as the Islamische
Gemeinschaft in Deutschland, the FIOE German member organization.
79 80In addition to its member organizations, FIOE is also comprised of what it calls its
“central organizations”, the most prominent of which include:
811. European Council for Fatwa Research
Headquartered in Dublin, the ECFR is a theological body headed by global
Muslim Brotherhood leader Youssef Qaradawi and composed of scholars,
most of who reside outside of Europe. The ECFR meets annually and issues
fatwas consistent with the Muslim Brotherhood tradition represented by
Qaradawi.
2. The Europe Trust
A U.K. charity founded in 1996 that purports to be independent but functions
actually as a funding mechanism for FIOE. Most of the activity of the Europe
Trust has been devoted to amassing a real-estate portfolio and has been
funded by sources in Gulf countries including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab
75
“New Body of European Imams: What's Next?”, IslamOnline.net, February 28, 2008.76
“Pan-European Muslim Org. Forms Special body for Preachers and Prayer Leaders,” KUNA,February 24, 2008.
77
The Official Web Site of the Federation of Islamic Organizations in Europe,http://www.eu-islam.com/en/templates/Index_en.asp. (Date Saved: January 20, 2007, no longer
available)
78
MainFrame, www.eu-islam.com/en/templates/about_en.asp. (Date saved: January 20,2007, no longer available)
79
Official Website of The Amman Message, “Grand List of Endorsements of the Amman Messageand its Three Points,”
http://www.ammanmessage.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=17&Itemid=31
80
http://www.verfassungsschutz.de/download/SHOW/vsbericht_2005_engl.pdf.81
MainFrame, www.eu-islam.com/en/templates/about_en.asp. (Date saved: January 20,2007, no longer available)
Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
13Emirates, Kuwait, and Bahrain. The majority of Trustees are FIOE officers
including Ibrahim El-Zayat.
823. European Institute for Human Sciences
Founded by the French FIOE member organization in 1990, the stated
purpose of EIHS was to train Imams in the European context, but the
institution rather appears to be promoting Arabization and re-Islamization of
its students. EIHS has failed to graduate significant number of students trained
as Imams and has suffered financial problems of late.
4. The Forum of European Muslim Youth and Student Organizations
(FEMYSO)
Founded in 1996 and headquartered in Brussels, FEMYSO is the youth and
student division of FIOE and will be discussed later in this report.
Each of these organizations has strong ties to the global Muslim Brotherhood and/or Saudi
institutions such as the World Assembly of Muslim Youth (WAMY), as did the long-serving
FIOE President Ahmed Al-Rawi, recently retired, who made statements supporting terrorism
in Israel and Iraq.
83 84 Dr. Al-Rawi is also a Trustee of the Union of Good, the worldwidecoalition of charities supporting Hamas that was discussed previously in the section on Al-
Aqsa Belgium.
85Ligue Islamique Interculturelle De Belgique
A 2001-2002 report by the Belgium parliamentary Intelligence Committee identifies
the Ligue Islamique Interculturelle De Belgique (LIIB), the Belgian FIOE member organization,
as one of several Muslim Brotherhood organizations in Belgium operating under other
names.
86 The LIIB was founded in February 1997 by Monsif Chatar and Karim Azzouzi, thecurrent LIIB President and Vice President respectively, as well as two other relatively unknown
individuals.
87 The purposes of the new organization included: integration of immigrants,promoting tolerance, youth development, and projects to “ensure the auto- financial
sufficiency of association.” In June 1998, several important changes were made:
•
The LIIB changed its registered address to its present location.82
Extract from the Central Register of Charities maintained by the Charity Commission forEngland and Wales,
http://www.charitycommission.
gov.uk/registeredcharities/showtrustees.asp?Chy=4007138&Reg=1103290&Type=M
ain+Charity&Name=EUROPE+TRUST&SubID=.
83
Nicholas Rufford and Abul Taher, “British Muslim Says Troops are Fair Target,” Times Online,October 31, 2004.
84
Ian Johnson, “Islamic Group's Ties Reveal Europe's Challenge,” The Wall Street Journal,December 29, 2005.
عوضوم يا
- ريخلا فالتئا 85 , www.101days.org/arabic/modules.php?name=somnaa. face=ErasITC-Medium>86
Sénat et Chambre des Représentants de Belgique, Session De 2001-2002, Rapport d'activité2001 du Comité permanent de contrôle des services de renseignements et de sécurité, 19 Juillet
2002,
http://www.senate.be/www/?MIval=/publications/viewPubDoc&TID=33618007&LANG=fr.
87
Registration document.Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
14•
The Europe Trust was assigned any assets remainingupon dissolution of the organization.
•
An Islamic youth organization called "Spaces CulturalMoslem Youth" was created within the LIIB.
The June 1998 document was signed by LIIB President M.
Chatar as General-Secretary and by Bassem Hatahet.
88 LIIB LocationIn February 2006, the LIIB added Franck Hensch as Vice President/Secretary and Beji
Denguir as Treasurer.
89 Born in Verviers, Mr. Hensch, likely an Islamic convert, is 29-years oldand lists his profession as “organizer.” In June 2001, he was listed as the Secretary of an
Islamic culture association in Verviers, and in March 2005, he was appointed the Secretary for
Al-Aqsa Belgium.
90 91 Mr. Hensch was removed as Vice President/Secretary and replaced byKarim Azzouzi.
92 Current LIIB officers are Monsif Chatar (President), Karim Azzouzi (VicePresident/Secretary), and Beji Denguir (Treasurer).
The LIIB maintains a facility at its registered address, located in a middle-class
residential/commercial neighborhood in southern Brussels close to the Midi/Zuid train
station. Islamic websites also list a mosque known as the Centre Abidine at the same
address.
93 In November 2007, the LIIB headquarters had a poster on its window advertising aconference with Muslim Brotherhood figure Hani Ramadan.
In recent years, the LIIB has demonstrated strong ties to the global Muslim
Brotherhood and the organization maintains associations to Brotherhood figures Tariq and
Hani Ramadan, the grandsons of the founder of the Brotherhood. The 2001 report of the
Belgian parliamentary Intelligence Committee states:
“The Ligue islamique interculturelle organizes conferences regularly where it
invites Tariq Ramadan and his brother Hani Ramadan. They note that the
moderate speeches which Tariq Ramadan gives in public always do not
correspond with the remarks which he makes in restricted Islamic mediums,
where they are definitely more critical towards Western Society.”
94The LIIB is known to have sponsored a November 2006 conference with Hani
Ramadan and in November 2007, as noted above, the LIIB headquarters had a poster for yet
88
Ligue islamique interculturelle de Belgique 1080 Bruxelles ANDERUNG DER SATZUNGEN ***VERLEGUNG DER SITZES Veröffentlichung: 2001-11-15 N. 021937 Identification : 410097
MWST oder Unternehmensnummer: : 460342697.
89
http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/tsv_pdf/2006/02/27/06041047.pdf.90
" Dar Salam " 4840 Welkenraedt SATZUNGEN *** Veröffentlichung: 2001-06-07 N.009696 Identification : 96962001 MWST oder Unternehmensnummer: : 474870626
91
http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/tsv_pdf/2005/04/28/05062700.pdf92
http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/tsv_pdf/2006/09/28/06149652.pdf.93
L'Annuaire Musulman | Mosquées | Mosquées et Centres islamiques | Centre Al Abidine |L’Annuaire Musulman
http://www.annuaire-musulman.com/view.php?id=1114&page=0&cat=78.
94
Sénat et Chambre des Représentants de Belgique, Session De 2001-2002, Rapport d'activité2001 du Comité permanent de contrôle des services de renseignements et de sécurité, 19 Juillet
2002,
http://www.senate.be/www/?MIval=/publications/viewPubDoc&TID=33618007&LANG=fr.
Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
15another conferences with Hani Ramadan in its window.
95 The LIIB has also been involvedwith a number of FIOE activities including a 2003 joint event with FEMYSO, signing a joint
petition with 24 other FIOE affiliates, organizing conferences with and sponsoring several
speakers from the FIOE French affiliate.
96 97 98 99 100The LIIB also has relationships with important Saudi Islamist institutions. The
Parliamentary reports states that the organization maintains contacts with the Islamic Cultural
Center of Brussels (ICCB), identified earlier as a Saudi-sponsored institution. Also, an archived
website of the Saudi World Assembly of Muslim Youth (WAMY) lists the LIIB as one of eight
Islamic organizations in Europe, all of which are FIOE affiliates.
101Forum of European Muslim Youth and Student Organisations
The website of the Forum of European Muslim Youth and Student Organisations
(FEMYSO) traces its origin to a series of meetings held in 1996 with various youth and student
organizations under the sponsorship of FIOE and the Islamic Foundation.
102 Another sourcesays that FEMYSO was created by a joint initiative of the FIOE and the World Assembly of
Muslim Youth together with several national Muslim youth organizations.
103 In 2004, theFIOE website included FEMSO as one of its “central organizations” and described it as “...a
forum that consists of dozens of youth and student organizations and associations spanning
most of Europe. The Forum works towards increasing the awareness of Muslim youth and
preserving their identity through organizing seminars, conferences, camps, and advanced
courses, as well as through publishing leaflets, magazines, and books and creating a
communication network of members and contacts via the Internet.”
104FEMYSO says that it has since has developed into a network of 37 member
organizations, bringing together youth from over 40 countries.
105 The organization isheadquartered in central Brussels, occupying one of two offices in a second floor office suite.
The adjacent office is occupied by the World Assembly of Muslim Youth (WAMY). In 2003,
Belgian phone records listed a Bassen Hatahet at the same address and a telephone number
that belonged to FEMYSO operation.
106 10795
CONFERENCE FEVRIER 2006: Mouedden Mohsinhttp://moueddenmohsin.blogspirit.com/archive/2006/01/31/conference-fevrier-2006.html
96
“Femyso.org: 2003,” p9445.typo3server.info/56.0.html. face=ErasITC-Medium>97
“An urgent appeal from Muslims and Islamic Bodies in Europe,”http://web.archive.org/web/20040914102712/http://www.rabita.ch/francais/communiques/ur
gent_appel_journalists.htm.
98
“Dounia News,” www.dounia-news.com/mois-2004/fevrier/16-02.html. face=ErasITC-Medium>99
AU NOM DE DIEU LE TOUT MISERICORDIEUX LA LIGUE ISLAMIQUE INTERCULTURELLE DEBELG, www.islam-belgique.com/annonce.cfm?StartRow=516&PageNum=36. (Date saved:
June 17, 2005, no longer available)
100
AuteurMessage, femmesmusulmanes.forumactif.com/viewtopic.forum?t=1134.(Date saved: June 17, 2005, no longer available)
101
http://web.archive.org/web/20030102102350/http://wamy.co.uk/islam/islam_frame31.html.102 “
Femyso.org: History,” p9445.typo3server.info/20.0.html. face=ErasITC-Medium>103
Sara Silvestri, “Interacting with Muslim Communities in the EU,” Centre of International Studies,University of Cambridge, 2003.
104
MainFrame, web.archive.org/web/20040715151512/http://www.euislam.com/en/templates/about_en.asp.
105 “
Femyso.org: About us,” p9445.typo3server.info/profil.0.html. face=ErasITC-Medium>106
Europe “White & Yellow Pages,” Infobel DVD107
http://www.ljp.lv/docs/musulmani.doc (no longer available).Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
16Although FEMYSO has recently elected new and relatively unknown leadership, five of
the eleven trustees are important leaders in the German Muslim Brotherhood and/or officers
of FIOE:
108 109•
Ibrahim El-Zayat is one of the founders of FEMYSO.110 He is the head ofthe Muslim Brotherhood organization in Germany, a FIOE officer, and
the former head of WAMY in Western Europe.
111 A May 2007 Germannews report stated that Mr. Ibrahim El-Zayat is currently the
representative of the Brussels office of FEMYSO, and in that capacity, he
functions as a lobbyist to European institutions on issues such as the
headscarf.
112•
Ayman Aly is also one of the founders of FEMYSO.113 He is the currentSecretary-General of FIOE and the Assistant Secretary-General of the
International Islamic Federation of Student Organizations (IIFSO), which
has close relations with the Saudi Muslim World League and the World
Assembly of Muslim Youth (WAMY).
114 115 116•
Ogüz Ucuncu is the business partner of Ibrahim El-Zayat and theSecretary General of Milli Gorus in Germany, a Turkish Islamist
organization that runs 300 mosques in Germany.
117•
Khallad Swaid is the former President of FEMYSO who, as late as 2005,was identified as the Chairman of the Muslimische Jugend (MJD), a
FEMYSO member organization with which Mr. El-Zayat and his brother
Bilal are closely associated.
118 119•
Hadia Himmat is the former FEMYSO Vice President and likely thedaughter of Ali Ghaleb Himmat, long-time head of the IGD and Mr. El-
Zayat’s predecessor and close associate of Youssef Nada, the “foreign
minister” for the International Muslim Brotherhood and also a former
member of the IGD.
108
“Femyso.org: President & ExCo,” p9445.typo3server.info/15.0.html. face=ErasITC-Medium>109 “
Femyso.org: Board of Trustees,” p9445.typo3server.info/16.0.html. face=ErasITC-Medium>110
I-G-D e.V.http://www.i-g-d.de/cmsde1/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=66&Itemid=33
111
Ian Johnson, “Islamic Group's Ties Reveal Europe's Challenge,” The Wall Street Journal,December 29, 2005.
112
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, "Die Macht des Ibrahim El Zayat," Frankfurter AllgemeineZeitung
, May 11, 2007.113
“Guest CV: Dr. Aiman Ali,” IslamonLine.nethttp://www.islamonline.net/livedialogue/english/Guestcv.asp?hGuestID=rbQxt5.
114
“European Muslims Charter Born,” KUNA, January 10, 2008.115
“Guest CV: Dr. Aiman Ali,” IslamonLine.nethttp://www.islamonline.net/livedialogue/english/Guestcv.asp?hGuestID=rbQxt5.
116
“The Muslim World After 9/11,” RAND. 2004.117
Ofri Ilani, “German Turk Takes on 'Anti-Semitic Islamic Propaganda,” Haaretz, October 12, 2006.118 “
Femyso.org: President & ExCo,” p9445.typo3server.info/15.0.html. face=ErasITC-Medium>119
“Muslimische Jugend Deutschland”http://www.jugendserver.de/wai1/showcontent.asp?ThemaID=3886, February 14, 2004.
Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
17Current and former FEMYSO leaders are also active in the Verviers Islamic complex
housing the CECIV and Essalem. Perhaps the most prominent of these is Michael Privot who
has been a Vice President of FEMYSO and is currently listed as the Vice Secretary of the
CECIV.
120 121 Mr. Privot is the Campaigns & Networking Officer at the European NetworkAgainst Racism, which is described as a network of over 600 European NGOs working to
combat racism in all the EU member states.
122 123 In November 2005, Mr. Privot participated ina U.S. State Department conference in Brussels that brought together Belgian and American
Muslims. The participating American organizations included all of the major U.S. Muslim
Brotherhood organizations including the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), the Council
on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC), and the
Muslim Students Association of the US and Canada (MSA). Joint initiatives between FEMYSO
and MSA were announced at a follow-up to the conference.
124 Other FEMYSO leaders withties to CECIV/Essalem include CECIV founder Hassan Swaid, who listed the same address as
FEMYSO leader Khallad Swaid, and Hajib El Hajjaji, an officer of both CECIEV and Essalem,
who has helped to organize at least one FEMYSO event.
125 126 127The FEMYSO website states that:
“Over the last 4 years it has become the de facto voice of Muslim Youth in
Europe and is regularly consulted on issues pertaining to Muslims in Europe
and has developed useful links with the European Parliament, the Council of
Europe, the United Nations, and a host of other relevant organizations at the
European level.”
These claims are substantiated by evidence that includes:
•
FEMYSO is one of the groups designated by the UN as “Speciallyaccredited to the World Conference against Racism.”
128•
The Council of Europe has designated FEMYSO as one of thirty membersof its Advisory Council on Youth for 2006-2008.
129120
“Michael Privot: A Muslim Declaration of Independence,” The Providence Journal, November25, 2005.
121
HV – SC,http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/cgi_tsv/tsv_rech.pl?language=fr&btw=0865470622%20&liste=Li
ste.
122
“ENAR - ENAR Staff,” www.enar-eu.org/en/info/staff.shtml. face=ErasITC-Medium>123
“ENAR - About ENAR,” www.enar-eu.org/en/about/. face=ErasITC-Medium>124
MDC21, www.muslimdialogue.be/gallery/pages/MDC21.htm. face=ErasITC-Medium>125
HV – SC,http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/cgi_tsv/tsv_rech.pl?language=fr&btw=0865470622%20&liste=Li
ste.
126
http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/cgi_tsv/tsv_rech.pl?language=fr&btw=0477992838%20&liste=Li
ste .
127
http://p9445.typo3server.info/uploads/media/21Jan2006_en.pdf.128
BILAN 2003 - E/CN.4/2003/19/Add.1http://www.hri.ca/fortherecord2003/bilan2003/documentation/commission/e-cn4-2003-19-
add1.htm.
129
”Composition of the Advisory Council on Youth for the Period 2006-2008,” Council of Europe,Committee of Ministers,
Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
18•
Since 2003, FEMYSO has been meeting with the Group of PolicyAdvisors (GOPA), a think-tank attached to the President of the European
Commission, as well as attending briefing conferences organized by the
Commission's Counselor For Religious Affairs.
130•
FEMYSO took part in a conference jointly sponsored with the EuropeanYouth Forum that was held at the European Parliament in September
2003.
131More Infrastructure
Since 2001, there is evidence that the Muslim Brotherhood in Belgium has been
attempting to develop a more comprehensive infrastructure as it has done in other European
countries. This effort is reflected in the creation of the following organizations, all of which
involve Bassem Hatahet or his business partner Karim Chemlal as a signatory:
1. Charity
Bassem Hatahet is listed as the President of an organization founded in January
2001 known as the Association Assalem pour les actions humanitaires,
culturelles et de charité en Belgique.
132 The Secretary/General is listed asYaslam Chibah, with an address associated with various CECIV/Essalem
officers, and the Treasurer is listed as Moncef Chatar, likely the current LIIB
President. One of the two additional founding members is Ahmed Al Raoui,
likely Ahmed Al-Rawi, the past President of FIOE. The declared purposes of
Assalem included “assistance with humane, charitable, and cultural activities”,
promotion of “constructive dialogue between institutions and the minorities,
and encouraging ”projects of development and investments intended for
minorities.” Like the LIIB, the founding statutes specify that in case of
dissolution, remaining assets will go to the Europe Trust, the “charitable” arm of
FIOE.
2. Student
In August 2005, Bassem Hatahet was listed as one of three founding members
of the Union des Organisations Estudiantines Musulmans.
133 The otherfounders and officers are three relatively unknown individuals who appear to
be genuine students, listing home addresses in Kuwait, Malaysia, and Benin.
https://wcd.coe.int/ViewDoc.jsp?id=951125&Site=COE&BackColorInternet=DBDCF2&BackColorI
ntranet=FDC864&BackColorLogged=FDC864.
130
“Islam in the European Commission’s System of Regulation of Religion” in Aziz Al-Azmeh andEffie Fokas (Editors), “Islam in Europe: Diversity, Identity and Influence.”
131
“Youth Event Enhances Dialogue between MEPS and Young Muslims,” Forum of EuropeanMuslim Youth and Student Organisations and Youth Forum Press Release, September 16, 2003,
http://web.archive.org/web/20051104010911/http://www.youthforum.org/en/press/press_rele
ases/0576-03EN.pdf.
132
Association Assalem pour les actions humanitaires, culturelles et de charité en BelgiqueSATZUNGEN Veröffentlichung: 2001-02-15 N. 002841 Identification : 28412001 MWST oder
Unternehmensnummer: : 473999507.
133
http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/cgi_tsv/tsv_rech.pl?language=fr&btw=0875698974%20&liste=Li
ste.
Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
19The registered address for the organization is in Brussels, just around the corner
from the address listed by Beji Denguir, the Treasurer of the LIIB.
3. Umbrella
The Ligue des Musulmans de Belgique (LMB) was created in February 2006.
134The name suggests that the organization was created as a successor to the LIIB
and the statutes state that the LMB is a member of FIOE whose assets on
dissolution go the Europe Trust.
135 Of the eleven signatories to the foundingdocument, two are known to be officers of other Belgian Muslim Brotherhood
organizations: Karim Azzouzi, LIIB Vice President/Secretary and Abdel El Hajjaji,
an officer of CECIV/Essalem in Verviers. A third, Karim Chemlal, is the business
partner of Bassem Hatahet and is identified in recent news reports as the head
of the LMB.
136 Two more founders are possible relatives of Brotherhoodorganization officers including Redouae Chatar and Ben Razzouk who listed an
address adjacent to the registered address of the Union des Organisations
Estudiantines Musulmans, discussed above. Since its creation, the LMB has
been a signatory to several online petitions concerning Islamic issues such as
the Danish cartoon crisis and supporting the ex-head of the Central Muslim
body after he was arrested on charges of fraud.
137 138 In September 2007, theLMB hosted a meeting in Brussels which brought together over 400 Islamic
organizations to sign a code of conduct developed by the FIOE for Muslims
who live in Europe.
139The LMB is likely the same organization referred to on theFIOE website as the Muslim Association of Belgian, the FIOE Belgian member
organization.
140FIOE HQ
Until very recently, the FIOE national office was
located in Markfield, U.K., where the ex-President Ahmed Al-
Rawi was working. In May 2007, the FIOE national office was
moved to an address in Brussels located in a largely immigrant
neighborhood but within several blocks of the important EU
buildings.
141 In addition to the FIOE, it appears that the FIOE Headquarters134
Résultat recherche Banque-Carrefour des Entreprises (BCE) et Registre du Commerce,http://kbo-bce-ps.mineco.fgov.be/ps/kbo_ps/kbo_search.jsp?VO=3468BA54.
135
http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/cgi_tsv/tsv_rech.pl?language=fr&btw=0879261151%20&liste=Li
ste.
136
Nawab Khan, “Belgian Activist Lauds Kuwait’s Role in Establishing European Muslims,” KUNA,January 24, 2008.
137
BRIEF N.A.V. DE KARIKATUREN VAN DE PROFEET :: Voem vzw :: www.voem-vzw.behttp://www.voem-vzw.be/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=202.
138
Fraudes à l'Exécutif des musulmans,http://www.bladi.net/forum/88727-fraudes-lexecutif-musulmans/index2.html.
139
De Morgen: Buitenland - Europese moslims ondertekenen historische 'gedragscode' (124941)http://demorgen.be/dm/nl/990/Buitenland/article/detail/124941/2008/01/07/Europesemoslims-
ondertekenen-historische-gedragscode.dhtml.
140
Contact Us : Euro-Muslimhttp://www.euro-muslim.net/English/yo-yo-yo/contact-us
141
Headquarters of FIOE : Euro-Muslimhttp://www.euro-muslim.net/English/fioe/headquarters-of-fioe.
Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
20European Federation of Muslim Women, an organization associated with FIOE though not
listed as an official FIOE organization, is also located at that address. According to Belgian
phone records, Bassem Hatahet is listed at this address and shares the same telephone
number as the FIOE national office.
1421. Bassem Hatahet
A January 2007 article posted on the Internet describes a Bassem Hatahet as a
member of the FIOE.
143 He is 43-years old and was born in Damascus, Syria, where he likelystill has relatives. Various sources list a residential address for Mr. Hatahet in northwest central
Brussels.
144 Security sources in Belgium describe Mr. Hatahet as the most important MuslimBrotherhood figure in Belgium, and a Bassem Hatahet was listed in a 1999 phonebook
belonging to Youssef Nada, a self-described leader of the Muslim Brotherhood who was
designated by the U.S. in 2002 as a terrorism financier.
145 146 Mr. Hatahet is an executive in atleast two real-estate related businesses in Brussels, and a March 2007 announcement
published by the city of Brussels indicates that he was constructing an apartment building
with eleven apartments at that time.
147 One of the businesses, Eurocim European CapitalInvestment Management, lists Monsieur Mohamed Rachad Hatahet with an address in
Damascus as the other officer.
148 The other business, Nitro EU Consulting, lists Karim Chemlalas Manager.
1492. Karim Chemlal
Karim Chemlal is a 40 year old resident of Brussels, born in Morocco and now also a
naturalized citizen of Belgium.
150 He has a PhD in microbiology and has been employed inthat field. As noted above, he is listed as the Manager of Nitro EU Consulting, where Bassem
Hatahet is an executive, and his current address in Brussels is located close to the apartment
building that Mr. Hatahet is constructing. In July 1999, he was also listed as a responsible
party on the founding documents for a Moroccan immigrant organization known as
Nibras.
151 Dr. Chemlal has been active in Belgian Islamic affairs including:•
Dr. Chemlal was one of the nine individuals from Belgium who endorsedthe “Amman Message”, a statement that was issued on November 9,
2004 by King Abdullah II of Jordan, calling for tolerance and unity in the
142
White Pages look up for “Hatahet,”http://www.whitepages.be/search/hatahet.html;jsessionid=12A6A7BE1D50898AB3DB22155B3
CA7B.
143
Ab wann ist ein Embryo ein menschliches Lebewesen?http://www.aerztezeitung.de/panorama/?sid=436219.
144
White Pages look up for “Hatahet,”http://www.whitepages.be/search/hatahet.html;jsessionid=12A6A7BE1D50898AB3DB22155B3
CA7B.
145
Youssef Nada phonebook.146
“Designation of 10 Terrorist Financiers Fact Sheet,” U.S. Treasury Department Press Release,April 19, 2002.
147
http://www.brucity.be/pdf/commission%20de%20concertation%20de%20dossier/2007/OJ0709
04.pdf.
148
Eurocim 2006 Annual Report.149
Dun & Bradstreet, Inc., Worldbase, August 14, 2005, NITRO EU CONSULTING SPRL.150
Nitro EU 2007, Corporate document.151
Nibras 2660 Hoboken SATZUNGEN *** Veröffentlichung: 2000-01-13 N. 001029Identification : 10292000 MWST oder Unternehmensnummer: : 469124266.
Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
21Muslim world.
152 Among the other signers in Belgium were KhalladSwaid, the former President of FEMYSO, and Mohamed Boulif, a former
President of the Islamic Executive Council. Many of the signatories to the
Amman message are known to be part of the global Muslim
Brotherhood, and the effort was based partially on the fatwas of
Brotherhood leader Youssef Qaradawi.
153•
In February 2006, Dr. Chemlal was listed as a contact person on anonline petition protesting the Danish cartoons.
154•
Dr. Chemlal, along with the other Belgian signers of the AmmanMessage, attended a July 2006 conference in Istanbul titled “Muslims In
Europe.” The conference also featured many prominent members of the
global Muslim Brotherhood, including Bosnian Grand Mufti, Mustafa
Ceric, Tunisian Islamist Rachid Ghannouchi, and Ahmed Al-Rawi, the
President of the FIOE.
155Recent news reports describe Dr. Chemlal as representing FIOE in Belgium.
156 TheFIOE website lists him as both the contact person for the FIOE Belgian member
organization and as the head of the FIOE Youth and Student department.
157 158Conclusions
This report has identified a more elaborate Muslim Brotherhood infrastructure in
Belgium than was previously known publicly. The 2002 Belgian parliamentary report
identified only the Ligue Islamique Interculturelle De Belgique (LIIB) and the early student
organizations as part of that infrastructure. Conspicuously absent was the entire Hamas
support operation in Verviers, mentioned only briefly in the report as part of the Hamas
“presence” in Belgium. It is not clear why Al-Aqsa Belgium and CECIV/Essalem were not
included as part of the Belgian Muslim Brotherhood. It is also not clear why the Belgian
government never acted to shutdown Al-Aqsa Belgium as both Germany and the
Netherlands did. While sources in the Belgian security service say this was due to the lack of a
Belgian anti-terror law, it should also be noted that in 2006, Belgium, along with France and
Ireland, argued against declaring the political wing of Hamas a terrorist group, a position that
might shed light on the thinking behind the decision.
159 As noted in the report, Al-Aqsa152
Official Website of The Amman Message, “Grand List of Endorsements of the Amman Messageand its Three Points,”
http://www.ammanmessage.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=17&Itemid=31
153
Official Website of The Amman Message, “The Amman Message,”http://www.ammanmessage.com/.
154
BRIEF N.A.V. DE KARIKATUREN VAN DE PROFEET :: Voem vzw :: www.voem-vzw.behttp://www.voem-vzw.be/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=202.
155
Muslims of Europe Conference,http://web.archive.org/web/20070329013229/www.muslimsofeurope.com/invitees.php.
156
Nawab Khan, “Belgian Activist Lauds Kuwait’s Role in Establishing European Muslims,” KUNA,January 24, 2008.
157
Members : Euro-Muslim,http://www.euro-muslim.net/English/members.
158
Contact Us : Euro-Muslim,http://www.euro-muslim.net/English/yo-yo-yo/contact-us.
159
“Magistrates Allege Italian Sources of Funding for Hamas,” BBC Monitoring Europe – Political,August 21, 2006.
Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
22Belgium has been successful at preserving the Al-Aqsa Foundation in Europe following the
cessation of operations in Germany and the Netherlands.
The record of the Brotherhood operations in Brussels is more mixed. Beyond
sponsoring a youth conference under the auspices of the Council of Europe, the Ligue
Islamique Interculturelle De Belgique does not appear to have succeeded in gaining
recognition from any governmental organizations and the Belgian government does appear
to have succeeded in keeping the Brotherhood out of the government-sponsored Muslim
council by screening the members for extremist backgrounds.
160 This is in sharp contrast toFrance, for example, where the government sponsored elections resulted in a dominant role
for the Muslim Brotherhood organization there. Although, as this report has documented,
the Belgian Brotherhood has recently created a series of new national organizations, it is not
clear that any of them has yet been particularly active or successful.
Far more successful have been the Belgian-based components of the Federation of
Islamic Organizations in Europe (FIOE), particularly the Forum of European Muslim Youth and
Student Organizations (FEMYSO), which have managed to achieve official status at the UN,
as well as with the Council of Europe and the European Commission. In addition, the location
of the FIOE national office in Brussels has resulted in elevating the status of the Belgian
branch that recently reported becoming “very active.” Leading the FIOE office in Brussels is
Bassem Hatahet, whose name appears on virtually all of the paperwork associated with the
Muslim Brotherhood organizations in Belgian. This would appear to confirm Mr. Hatahet’s
role as the most important figure in the Belgian Brotherhood as reported by the Belgian
security services.
160
http://eycb.coe.int/eycbwwwroot/hre/eng/LTTCDC/LTTCDC_participants_projects/haoua.htm.
Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
23Appendix 1
Nine Eleven / Finding Answers (NEFA) Foundation – ©2008
http://www.nefafoundation.org
www.nefafoundation.org – info@nefafoundation.org
24
>











This "Steve Merley" is totally unknown, he has no other publication. The whole report is a mere compilation without a serious analysis.
Reply to this
"This "Steve Merley" is totally unknown, he has no other publication"
What has this to do with anything. Maybe he is writing under another name, maybe he doesn't usually publish, who cares?
2)"The whole report is a mere compilation without a serious analysis."
He says in the beginning his goal is to layout the structure of the Brotherhood in Belgium which he does by compiling the important information. What did you want, War and Peace?
Reply to this