The Future of the Muslim Brotherhood in Europe in 2022
A number of recent reports and studies published by European think tanks have revealed the reinforcements and measures that the European continent intends to implement next year in the framework of a comprehensive confrontation with various extremist organizations, including the Muslim Brotherhood.
A study issued Saturday by the European Center for Counterterrorism Studies and Intelligence outlined European measures during 2021 to confront Muslim Brotherhood infiltration, combat extremism and track the sources of financing terrorist organizations in several countries, including Britain, France, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Belgium and Austria. It mentioned the most prominent terrorist operations in those countries as well as the measures to be taken next year within the framework of the European Union’s comprehensive strategy to confront terrorism and extremism.
Jassim Mohammed, president of the European Center and a security expert, said that the threat posed by extremist groups, including the Muslim Brotherhood, which is classified as a terrorist group in several countries, will remain a threat in various European countries. This means it is important to continue to strengthen security and legal measures to restrict these groups and confront their spread in societies.
Mohammed stressed the importance of adopting a package of measures to contain the efforts of “Political Islam” movements to spread extremist ideology, as well as to confront the propaganda and media machine of extremist Salafi groups.
What are the new coping mechanisms?
The President of the European Center pointed to the importance of enacting strict laws and legislation to regulate the activities of those economic movements and dry up their sources of financing, as well as forming specialized teams to pursue and monitor the activities of extreme right-wing groups, to ban their activities, to neutralize the extremist their activities on the Internet and to strengthen cooperation with digital giant companies in order to help counter these extremist trends.
Ongoing risk and confrontation
According to the study, during 2022, Britain suffered several terrorist attacks, from the stabbing of MP David Amess to the Liverpool bombing.
Sweden and the United Kingdom have adopted several strategies to combat far-right and Islamist terrorism and to prevent mixed threats. Countries have also increased the flexibility of critical infrastructure and security measures to enhance cybersecurity.
Germany and Austria also made extensive efforts in combating extremism and terrorism in 2021, and they have been very successful in curbing the activities of extremist groups by placing some organizations and associations under surveillance and others have been banned.
Also on 5 April 2022, the French government unveiled a new draft law to combat terrorism by censoring the Internet like WhatsApp, Signal and Telegram using algorithms, and by expanding the use of algorithms by French intelligence services to track potential terrorists.
