European Parliament Reopens Muslim Brotherhood File: “Infiltration Under Surveillance”
Europe is taking another step in addressing the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood, as the European Parliament prepares to discuss the alleged infiltration of European institutions by members or organisations associated with the movement and the risks this may present.
The European Parliament is due to debate next Wednesday the need for a European Union strategy to protect the European way of life.
The discussion is expected to include alleged attempts by political Islam to infiltrate public institutions and civil society—that is, coordinated efforts to influence them from within to advance fundamentalist objectives.
The Muslim Brotherhood and organisations regarded as close to it are frequently mentioned in this context, according to information published on the European Parliament’s website.
The debate comes amid growing political controversy over the issue in several EU member states.
European Lawmakers Sound the Alarm
The new discussion comes only months after European lawmakers raised concerns during a parliamentary session entitled “The Infiltration of Political Islam and the Muslim Brotherhood’s Strategy”.
Participants warned of what they described as a systematic effort by the movement to penetrate key areas of European society by taking advantage of civil society structures and legal frameworks to reshape influence from within.
According to this assessment, the strategy does not rely on confrontation, but on the gradual accumulation of influence and the use of soft power.
During the session at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, several members highlighted the alleged risks posed by political Islam and the Muslim Brotherhood’s strategy in Europe.
They urged the European Union to take practical steps to identify potential threats, prevent their spread and hold those responsible to account.
Speaking during the session, MEP Nicolas Bay described the Muslim Brotherhood as “an extremist organisation seeking to transform Europe by infiltrating Western societies”.
He claimed that the movement was present within European institutions through organisations conducting coordinated lobbying activities intended, in his view, to advance the Islamisation of Europe.
Bay warned that the European Union must stop serving as a naïve platform for those seeking to weaken it.
“The Muslim Brotherhood’s institutional structure may appear formal, but its ideological essence remains extremist,” he said.
He added that the debate initiated in France following the publication of a report on Muslim Brotherhood influence had now reached Strasbourg. He called for the phenomenon to be identified, its expansion prevented and those involved held accountable.
Action by Member States
A report prepared by French intelligence services in May 2025 on alleged Muslim Brotherhood “infiltration” in France and its possible effect on republican values marked a turning point in Europe’s perception of the movement.
Last August, the Austrian government announced that it was working to prohibit political Islam and introduce legal amendments to achieve that objective, particularly in legislation governing associations and religious organisations.
The government project was launched at the initiative of Chancellor Christian Stocker after the authorities identified an organisation suspected of serving as a Muslim Brotherhood-linked entity. The group operated under the banner of combating extremism and participated in joint projects with Austria’s Justice Ministry.
The organisation in question is known as DREID. Austrian intelligence reportedly uncovered its alleged connections to the Muslim Brotherhood following a security review that began last June.
