French Government report warns of Islamic ‘Entryism’ a threat to national cohesion

President Emmanuel Macron held a senior ministers meeting on Wednesday that shared a concerning state commissioned report on the Muslim Brotherhood that is accused of being a threat to national unity. The report also called for action to contain the political islam’, drawing criticism from the Muslim community and considerable academics. 

A campaign to be launched based on recent revelations from an official report by the Ministry of the Interior, which disclosed the threat posed by the Brotherhood in France last week. The French president called on the government during a meeting of the High Defense Council to identify the risks and threats of the Brotherhood for discussion in the coming weeks.

Results of Government commissioned Report

Few claimed evidence of a policy of Islamic ‘entryism’ was drawn by two senior civil servants in the report. It also states that the Muslim Brotherhood is using soft powers through public bodies like schools and local government. “The reality of this threat, even if it is long-term and does not involve violent action, highlights the risk of damage to the fabric of society and republican institutions,” said an excerpt of the report, a copy of which Reuters obtained.

The far right opposition is now exuding pressure on President Macaron to act, enabling a crackdown of Islamist separatism with aims of limiting foreign influence over muslim communities and institutions. 

‘Separatism’ and ‘Entryism’

Although the terms may lay similar in theory, ‘Separatism’ implies a sector of people, here the Muslim Brotherhood living in parallel in the society, ‘Entryism’ is getting involved in the republic infrastructure, voyeurism and infiltration into the public communities from the inside and through soft power.   

The Report’s aim and stats

The 73 page document was commissioned in 2024, looking into the “political Islam and the Muslim Brotherhood movement”. According to the excerpt of the report acquired by Le Figaro newspaper, about 7 percent of France’s 2,800 Muslim places of worship are linked to the movement.

Bruno Retailleau, the Minister of Interior of France said, “Things are very clear. “There is a quiet Islamism spreading, notably by trying to enter and infiltrate sports, cultural, social and other associations.” He called that 

He also added about the Brotherhood’s aim as “to push all of French society towards sharia law” under caliphate, an ideal form of divine guidance that Muslims follow to live a righteous life. Human interpretations of sharia, or fiqh, are the basis of Islamic law today.

While they mostly target the vulnerable sectors of the society, including children and immigrants, to build ideologically indoctrinated generations, they engage in systematic infiltration of municipal councils and educational institutions.

Muslim Brotherhood as a threat in France

Muslim Brotherhood is a transitional Sunni Islamic Organisation founded in Egypt in 1928 by Hassan Al-Banna. While it is known that the Islamic organisation’s aim and goal is to be advocating for a society based on Islamic principles, their rejection of democratic principles and its preference for a political system based on Islamic law have led some countries to view it as a threat.

Muslim Brotherhood has efficiently blended with the vast muslim population in France, with several statistics and points from the report and others pointing out that the deviation of their own ideologies and goals from the beginning in the 20s to now stays as a threat. 139 places of worship affiliated with Muslims of France or the FMF, with an additional 68 considered close to the federation.

Instances of Muslim Brotherhood going beyond the soft power intrusion and handling extreme violence in the past also support the possibility and threat of leaving the inactive and dormant ‘entryism’. By 2020, there were 147 mosques and 18 Islamic schools associated with the brotherhood. UOIF has about 50 000 members distributed among 200 member organizations.

Instances of individuals from the Musulmans de France were accused of civilian attacks with extreme acts of violence, a quick contrast to the substantial existence of soft power that is ongoing in parallel. Arrests were made from the people of the Muslim Brotherhood for involvement in terrorism acts, along with spreading extremist thoughts and ideologies inducing hatred and violence against the French state and democratic policies. 

Islamic Entryism as ‘Terrorism’

France’s ultimate goal in the wake of ‘entryism’ is to classify the Islamic Brotherhood as a terrorist infiltration which will be on the path of other Arab and European countries. Countries like Bahrain, Egypt and Saudi Arabia, consider the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist organization. Austria under its Anti- terrorist laws and Russia has also enlisted the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organisation. 

While these countries are classifying the Brotherhood as a terrorist organisation, countries like Qatar, Turkey and other European organisations have been linked to funding the Muslim Brotherhood, not just in France but in other parts of the world. Reports from 2020 support the extensive and illicit funding from foreign sources to strengthen their influence in France.