UK Taxpayer Hands £6 Million a Year to Islamic Charities Working to ‘Damage Our Society’

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Around £6 million of taxpayers’ money is being handed each year to Islamic charities with extremist tendencies, “whose only goal is to damage our society” in some cases, a report has found.

The report, by The Henry Jackson Society, accuses some taxpayer-supported groups of backing “the spread of harmful non-violent extremist views that are not illegal; by providing platforms, credibility and support to a network of extremists operating in the UK”.

The document, titled Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing: How Islamist Extremists Exploit the UK Charitable Sector, says that the £6 million “is likely the tip of the iceberg”.

The author studied 30 charities and highlights several cases, including one organisation, the Islamic Research Foundation International (IRFI), which is chaired by Zakir Naik, an Islamic fundamentalist hate preacher who was banned from entering Britain by Prime Minister Theresa May when she was Home Secretary.

Another one, Helping Households Under Great Stress (HHUGS), is allegedly “an institutionally problematic charity, with extreme and illiberal individuals involved at all levels”.

It was registered with the Charity Commission in 2006 with the aim of “relieving the financial and emotional hardship of Muslim detainees/former detainees and families”.

The charity holds segregated, men-only fundraising events and invited Ahmad Jibril, a U.S.-based preacher who allegedly inspired one of the London Bridge terrorists, to speak at one of their events in 2013.

25 Feb

Henry Jackson Society

✔@HJS_Org

NEW: Today we release ‘Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing’, a carefully evidenced report which shows how some charities have been used by individuals with links to Islamist extremism - and reveals that the taxpayer has handed over millions of pounds to them via Gift Aid

Henry Jackson Society

✔@HJS_Org

The money is enough to fund 1000s of hospital beds, teachers’ salaries or soldiers’ wages. But instead it is being handed over to individuals some of whose involvement in extremism can be traced back to the Islamist scene in the early 2000s pic.twitter.com/tHNB8pIpzs

11:20 AM - Feb 25, 2018

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The report says that “figures from across the Islamist spectrum, including the Muslim Brotherhood” are active in the charity sector. The Muslim Brotherhood has been linked tothe Muslim Council of Britain (MCB), the UK’s largest Islamic umbrella group and also a registered charity.

Commenting on her report, Emma Webb, Research Fellow at the Centre for the Response to Radicalisation and Terrorism at The Henry Jackson Society, said:

“At a time of controversy over the size and capabilities of Britain’s Armed Forces and the pressure faced by public services, it is outrageous that millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money is unwittingly being handed over to extremists whose only goal is to damage our society. The £6 million figure is a minimum, with the evidence suggesting that this is only the tip of the iceberg.

“This report illustrates how these charities operate like a cartel, with extremist speakers involved in multiple organisations, presenting themselves as the voice of ‘true’ Islam and squeezing out moderate voices. The charities give them a platform, disseminating their literature and giving them credibility and access.

“Charitable status is not a right, it is a privilege. The public correctly expect that charities should work for society, not against it.

“Action is needed now if we are to stop this network of Islamist extremists from continuing to use charities and taxpayers’ money to fund the spread of divisive, illiberal and intolerant views within our own communities.”

HHUGS told The Times it had a healthy relationship with the Charity Commission. It added: “Hhugs has a risk-assessment policy in place to which all speakers are subjected.”

The IRFI said: “These are historic, unfounded and politically motivated accusations thrown into a speculative report, which are in no way reflective of the inclusive, harmonious nature of our charity.”

The MCF is made up of nine member organizations, all of which stand accused of funding terror or promoting extremism:

Human Appeal International – a UK-registered charity accused by the CIA and FBI of being “a fundraiser for Hamas.” The charity is a proscribed “Hamas-affiliated” organisation in Israel, and both the US Internal Revenue Service and State Department consider it to be a terror-funding entity.

Islamic Relief – an enormous British charity, which, in 2012, raised over £100 million [over $160 million]. Islamic Relief has received donations from terror-connected Yemeni charities, such as the Charitable Society for Social Welfare, which was established by the US-designated terrorist and “Bin Laden loyalist” Abdul Majeed Al-Zindani. In Gaza, Islamic Relief’s branches have supported Hamas-run institutions, including the Islamic University of Gaza and the Al-Falah Benevolent Society. Between 2011 and 2014, the British Government granted £1.5 million of taxpayers’ money to Islamic Relief’s UK branch.

Human Relief Foundation – a charity named by the leading Middle Eastern newspaper Gulf News as a key part of Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood’s network of charitable support in the UK.

Islamic Help – a charity that funds the Islamic Society of Gaza, a Hamas-run organization of which leading officials have included Ahmad Bahr, a senior Hamas leader who has said: “Oh Allah, vanquish the Jews and their supporters. Oh Allah, count their numbers, and kill them all, down to the very last one.”

Muslim Aid – a charity established by activists from Jamaat-e-Islami, the sub-continental cousin of the Muslim Brotherhood. The Daily Telegraph reported that Muslim Aid had funded charities connected to Palestinian terror groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad.

Muslim Hands – an Islamic charity says it is a “wise cause” to fight non-believers “because they are tyrants,” and encouraged Muslims to “take part in this jihad.” In Gaza, Muslim Hands has funded a number of Hamas charitable fronts.

Orphans in Need – a newly-established charity, which has promoted preachers such as Zahir Mahmood, who has claimed that, “Hamas are not terrorists; they’re freedom fighters, they’re defending their country.”

READ Foundation – a charity whose “partners” include the World Association of Muslim Youthand the Qatar Charitable Society, both of which have funded Hamas.

Al-Imdaad Foundation – a South African charity, the British branch of which has previously partnered with Viva Palestina, the pro-Hamas charity established by George Galloway and that included Hamas activists among its staff. One of Al-Imdaad’s trustees, Qari Ziyaad Patel, has written and sung a nasheed[Islamic song] in praise of the Taliban.