Muslims of France
Other names: Musulmans de France (MF)/ The Union of Islamic Organisations in France (UOIF)
Type: Charity Organisation
Country: France
Organisation Ideology: Muslim Brotherhood
Founded: 1983
Online Resources
Official website: Muslims of France
88.3K followers
1.3K subscribers
None
6.3K followers
Overview
Muslims of France, previously known as the Union of Islamic Organisations in France (UOIF) was founded in 1983 by a group of Tunisian students and a number of Middle Eastern political refugees to serve the Muslim community and preserve its identity. The organisation also sought to promote Islamic faith among Muslims amid the emergence of new topics on citizenship, French identity and Islamic culture. In 1989, the UOIF became famous following its demonstrations in February and March in Paris against the author Salman Rushdie to demand his book withdrawal. The book, entitled “Satanic Verses” published in 1988 triggered a storm in Muslim societies as they accused Rushdie of blasphemy and mocking Islam. The organisation further gained traction when it took up the case of three schoolgirls who were expelled from a French middle school for wearing headscarves in 1989.
Muslims of France comprises 280 associations, operates in 120 towns and owns two institutes specialised in educating Imams in France. The organisation is the French branch of the Federation of Islamic Organisations in Europe. It is also one of the biggest federations in France along with the Great Mosque of Paris and the National Federation of Muslims in France. It’s success comes from its capacity to build efficient networks both locally and internationally.
The organisation is theologically situated in the movement of the Muslim Brotherhood. In fact, in the 80s, the leadership of the organisation included two members from the Muslim Brotherhood in Tunisia, Ahmed Jaballah and Abdellah Benmansour. Both were members of the Islamist party An Nahda (currently in power in Tunisia).
The mounting media and government pressure on Muslim organisations to recognise “republican values” has pushed the organisation to change its name in 2017 to “Muslims of France”. According to Tariq Oubrou, an Imam in a mosque in the city of Bordeaux, the move aims to cut ties between the organisation and the Muslim Brotherhood and also help the organisation become more “attractive” for young Muslims.
Ties to Extremism
Elements within Muslims of France, such as Tariq Oubrou, an Imam in mosque in the French city of Bordeaux, stated in 2017 that the organisation is attempting to distance itself from the Muslim Brotherhood amid pressure by the government and media. Prior to that however, and in 2016, Amar Lasfar, the president of the UOIF, invited Abouzaid al-Mokri, member of the Islamist party PJD in Morocco, the Syrian preacher Mohamed Rateb Al Nabulsi, and Abdallah Salah Sana’an, a Saudi scholar, to give lectures at an Islamic event in the French city of Lille. French authorities, however, refused to allow these preachers to enter France and considered them as personae non gratae due to their previous hate speech. (A backgrounder of Al Nabusli’s can be accessed here on the EMAN website). Meanwhile, according to French media, Al Mokri was not allowed to enter France due to his hate speech against Jews. Marianne, a French newspaper, reported Al Mokri's statement where he said “Jews have a great capacity to destroy societies, even Christian ones, from inside. They own media and cinema halls.”