Paris: President Emmanuel Macron has ordered immediate government action following the release of a top-secret intelligence report warning against the growing influence of the Muslim Brotherhood in France. In a Defense Council last week, Macron called for high-ranking ministers from key portfolios—Foreign Affairs, Finance, National Education, Higher Education, and Sports—to consider what he called the "gravity of the facts" laid out in the report.
The report, kept under wraps by the Interior Ministry since last fall, describes the Muslim Brotherhood as a "sprawling organization" with a long-term strategy of ideological penetration in French society, particularly via schools, associations, and sports clubs.
Headquartered in Egypt in 1928, the Muslim Brotherhood is an Islamic political movement based on strict Sharia law. Originally a Middle Eastern movement, it has since the 1950s made a strong presence in Europe, particularly France, Germany, the UK, and Belgium.
The French movement became more organized during the 1980s by the Union of Islamic Organizations in France, now known as the Federation of Muslims of France. The report identifies this organization as the French offshoot of the Brotherhood.
The Brotherhood has lost ground in most of the Muslim world, but it is gaining strength in European democracies—especially at the local level, a report stated. According to the report, as municipal elections approach, the Brotherhood is trying to take hold of society by building up local networks around mosques and cultural associations.
The Brotherhood is accused by the report of practicing "entryism," the tactic of placing members into institutions with the intent to slowly alter their direction. The government estimates that the group has between 400 and 1,000 members within France and finds links to roughly 200 mosques—roughly 7% of the country's Muslim places of worship.
Online, the movement allegedly flourishes through so-called "preachers 2.0," social media influencers who spread fundamentalist concepts via social media platforms. These online personalities are typically the initial contact for youth who are encountering Islam and are seen as powerful ideological vectors.
President Macron called for the government to introduce fresh measures in early June. These might include extending tighter controls on foreign funding, particularly from countries like Qatar, the report names as a financial backer. Over €12 million in suspicious funding was seized since 2021, and 741 venues—like places of worship and schools—were shut down under the separatism law.
The document also urges action to address the feelings of alienation among French Muslims, which are said to be exploited by the Brotherhood. Recommendations include greater access to Muslim burial grounds, more Arabic language teaching in schools, and clarification of France's stance on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The findings have provoked shrill political reactions. Leftist politician Jean-Luc Mélenchon accused the government of fanning "Islamophobia" and of unleashing a "cruel inquisition." Contrarily, right-wing leaders like Xavier Bertrand and National Rally chief Jordan Bardella called for cracking down, including proscribing the Brotherhood and more control over foreign funding.
Secretary of Macron’s Renaissance party, a Gabriel Attal suggested banning the Islamic veil in public for girls aged under 15, in response to the warning by the report of Islamist influence in schools. The Federation of Muslims of France labeled the allegations as "unfounded" and warned against generalizing Islam with radicalism.
