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4mo ago

Macron Orders New Measures to Counter Muslim Brotherhood Influence in France

A state-commissioned report warns of a long-term, non-violent campaign to undermine French secularism, prompting proposals including a hijab ban for minors under 15.

Muslims offer Eid al-Fitr prayers outside the Grande Mosquee de Paris (Great Mosque of Paris) in Paris on June 25, 2017. Eid al-Fitr festival marks the end of the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan during which devotees are required to abstain from food, drink and sex from dawn to dusk. / AFP PHOTO / Zakaria ABDELKAFI (Photo credit should read ZAKARIA ABDELKAFI/AFP via Getty Images)
A Muslim woman wearing the niqab (veil which covers the body and leaves only a small strip for the eyes) is pictured during a meeting with Imam Ali El Moujahed on May 18, 2010 in Montreuil, outside Paris. The French parliament unanimously adopted on May 11, 2010 a resolution condemning the full-face Islamic veil as an affront to the nation's values. AFP PHOTO FRED DUFOUR (Photo by Fred DUFOUR / AFP) (Photo by FRED DUFOUR/AFP via Getty Images)
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Overview

  • The classified report identifies the Muslim Brotherhood as a long-term threat to French national cohesion through non-violent political Islamism and institutional infiltration.
  • Musulmans de France, the Brotherhood's alleged French branch, is linked to 139 mosques and other local organizations influencing secularism and gender equality.
  • President Macron chaired a Defence Council meeting today, tasking the government with drafting countermeasures by early June and committing to publish the report by week’s end.
  • Proposals under consideration include banning headscarves for minors under 15 in public spaces and criminalizing parental coercion to enforce veiling.
  • The report has ignited political debate, with far-right leaders demanding an outright ban on the Muslim Brotherhood and leftist figures accusing the government of Islamophobia.