IIIT Cancels Offer For Islamic Chair At Temple University, Concerns About Investigation Raised

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The International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT), a part of the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood, has canceled a $1.5 million offer to Temple University for an endowed chair in Islamic studies. According to a local media report, concerns were raised by Trustees and other parties regarding the role of IIIT in the so-called SAAR investigation into terrorism financing. IIIT was one of the Northern Virginia organization that was raided in 2002 as part of that investigation and was thought to have been providing financing for a Florida think-tank that served as a front for Palestinian Islamic Jihad. The chair was to be named for Ismail Al-Faruqi, who founded Temple’s Islamic studies program and was a co-founder of IIIT. Al-Faruqi was also known as the creator of the concept known as the “Islamization of Knowledge”, a key premise behind the operations of IIIT which has offices worldwide. According to the media report, the Temple President said that the University had decided to neither accept or reject the offer but was waiting until the federal investigations were complete in order to make a decision. According to their attorney, IIIT withdrew its offer several weeks ago after months of waiting for an answer from Temple. As of June 2007, media reports indicate that the SAAR investigation was ongoing. A previous post has reported on a “substantial contribution” made by IIIT in an effort to establish an Islamic Studies Chair at the University of Central Florida (UCF).

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