The Federation of Islamic Organizations in Europe (FIOE) has announced that it has thanked a Kuwaiti government leader for “serving Islam and Muslims and Muslim communities in Europe.” According to the announcement:
The President of the Islamic Organizations in Europe Mr.Chakib Bin Makhlouf presented his thanks to His Highness Gassem Abdel Mohsen Alkharafy the Head of the Kuwaiti National Assembly for the efforts that are exerted by the Prince, government and people of Kuwait in supporting charity work, and the efforts exerted by the Head of the Assembly personally in serving Islam and Muslims and Muslim communities in Europe, as well as expressing his appreciation at His Highness’s interest in the status of Muslims in Europe. This was during a visit of the International Support Organization to the Kuwaiti National Assembly on Monday November 16th 2009. Mr.Gassem Alkharafy stressed his great interest in the Muslims of Europe and the fact that he is constantly updated on their status during his many visits to the European region during which he has seen the role played by Islamic organizations in the West, he also expressed his admiration of the role played by Islamic schools in Europe in establishing the Islamic identity for generations of Muslim youth. He also promised his continued support. At the end of the meeting Mr.Chakib Bin Makhlouf reiterated his thanks to His Highness the Head of the National Assembly and gave him an open invitation to visit the headquarters of the Federation of Islamic Organizations in Europe in Brussels, which has special relations with the diplomatic missions of Arab and Islamic countries especially Kuwait.
A report on FIOE by the NEFA Foundation describes the organization as follows:
The Federation of Islamic Organizations in Europe (FIOE) claims to be an independent organization representing the interests of Muslims in Europe. In reality, the FIOE is an umbrella group that comprises the global Muslim Brotherhood in Europe. Strong links connect FIOE’s leadership central institutions and member organizations to the Brotherhood, as well as to Saudi Arabia. Funding for the FIOE is derived largely from Gulf sources, including some of the ruling families of the United Arab Emirates. The FIOE has strong ties to Hamas and Hamas fund-raising organizations, and some FIOE member organizations show evidence of links with Al-Qaida. The FIOE recently opened a headquarters office in Brussels and has had some success in positioning itself as a “dialog partner” for the EU and other important institutions.
Previous posts have discussed the role of FIOE in alleging various Israeli conspiracies to destroy the Al-Aqsa mosque and the Swiss FIOE member organization speaking invitation to an individual known for virulently anti-Semitic and anti-American comments.