Islamists aim to turn France into caliphate – intel chief

The influence of the Muslim Brotherhood in the country is growing, according to Bertrand Chamoulaud

The Islamist movement Muslim Brotherhood has been expanding its influence in France, acting behind the scenes to make the country a caliphate governed by Sharia law, according to the country’s top intelligence official.

Bertrand Chamoulaud, head of the National Directorate for Territorial Intelligence at the French Ministry of the Interior, made the remarks during an interview with Le Monde this week.

He said more than 100,000 worshippers attend mosques run by the Muslim Brotherhood, who spread their ideas through entrenchment and with a “very smooth” discourse rather than resorting to violence.

The movement is effectively using societal tensions to gradually infiltrate some social enterprises and civil society organizations, said Chamoulaud.

“This concerns us because their infiltration affects all sectors: sports, health, education, etc.,” he stressed.

One of their strategy tools is playing a victim role, Chamoulaud said, elaborating that every time a mosque is closed or a separatist imam is expelled, the Islamists denounce a so-called “Islamophobic state.”

The risk is that some moderate Muslims may be convinced by this victim discourse, the intel chief warned.

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He cited as an example the non-profit organization Collective against Islamophobia in France (CCIF), which was created in 2003 with a mission to combat discrimination towards Muslims. Dissolved in 2020, the CCIF was repeatedly criticized over its use of the term Islamophobia, and was suspected of having Islamist links.

The CCIF’s ideas, such as the compulsory veil or the rejection of mixed-race groups, are now gradually becoming established in Belgium, Chamoulaud claimed.

The Society of the Muslim Brothers, better known as the Muslim Brotherhood, is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by an Islamic scholar in 1928. It advocates the application of Islamic law in all aspects of society, and is banned as a terrorist organization by many countries.

French President Emmanuel Macron has launched a crackdown on what he calls Islamist separatism and radical Islam in the country following deadly jihadist attacks in recent years by foreign and homegrown militants. The measures aim to limit foreign influence over Muslim institutions in France.

Nearly seven million Muslims live in France, around 10% of the population, according to data by France’s statistics agency. Islam is the country’s second-largest religion after Catholicism.