From France, a European initiative to stop the Muslim Brotherhood
The National Assembly has committed the French government to asking the EU to include the 'Brotherhood' in its list of terrorist organisations. This is an unprecedented parliamentary initiative, which, if implemented, would also mark a turning point for other European countries.
22 January 2026 could be a turning point in European security policy. With the adoption of Resolution No. 215, the French National Assembly has officially instructed the Paris government to request that the European Union include the Muslim Brotherhood in its list of terrorist organisations. This initiative is based on a solid legal framework integrating international law (UN Resolution 1373), the founding principles of the Union (the Treaty on European Union and the Charter of Fundamental Rights), and the national law of 24 August 2021 on respect for the principles of the Republic. The technical basis for this proposal is the government report Frères Musulmans et Islamisme Politique en France, presented to the Defence Council on 21 May 2025, which translates intelligence findings into unprecedented parliamentary action.
The approved text describes the Muslim Brotherhood as a 'structured ideological network', whose goal of establishing a 'political order based on Sharia' is inherently 'incompatible with democratic principles, secularism and the rule of law'. The resolution highlights how the organisation operates in Europe through a strategy of 'institutional entryism', i.e. the widespread and covert penetration of schools, associations, and local authorities. By exploiting loopholes in democratic freedoms and making use of 'foreign funding', the movement aims to 'create religious counter-societies'. A key passage states that the French, German and Austrian intelligence services have ascertained the presence in Europe of networks linked to the Muslim Brotherhood that are working towards the progressive Islamisation of politics.
The document also highlights the involvement of some Brotherhood branches in supporting terrorist entities and spreading rhetoric that justifies violence against Western democracies. A decisive precedent is set by Hamas, the Palestinian branch of the movement, which has long been on the European Union's blacklist. This has led to a political shift in France, where the ideological apparatus operating within society is now considered inseparable from the armed wing active in Middle Eastern conflicts.
Specifically, the resolution urges the Commission and the EU Council to conduct a legal and factual assessment of the Brotherhood's transnational network in Europe, calling for tighter controls on the distribution of European funds. Most importantly, it proposes the formal inclusion of the movement and its leaders on the EU list of terrorist organisations. If adopted, this measure would entail freezing assets, banning financing, and obliging judicial cooperation between all Member States, applying the same restrictive regime already in force for Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State.
Paris's move is part of a global dynamic that is already underway. Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Russia have considered the Muslim Brotherhood to be a terrorist organisation for years. In Europe, Austria introduced an anti-terrorism law in 2019 that explicitly bans symbols and activities associated with the movement. Most recently, on 24 November 2025, the United States initiated a procedure that culminated on 13 January 2026 in the designation of the Brotherhood's branches in Lebanon, Jordan, and Egypt as Foreign Terrorist Organisations. This decision was motivated by the Brotherhood's support for Hamas and Hezbollah, as well as their involvement in violent activities following the 7 October 2023 attacks. This led to the immediate exclusion of the designated structures from the American financial system.
Other countries are following closely. In 2025, Sweden established a commission of experts to map the infiltration of Islamist movements into society and severely limit foreign funding directed at religious communities. At the same time, Germany tightened its administrative action, intensifying its decrees banning Islamist organisations deemed incompatible with the constitutional order. However, no state had yet made such an explicit request of the European Union, the repercussions of which would be felt in all member countries, including Italy. Under its legal system, Articles 8, 19 and 20 of the Constitution guarantee the strict protection of religious and associative freedoms. This makes it legally complex to sanction a movement based on ideological affiliation alone in the absence of specific, proven crimes. If Paris's request were to be accepted, however, it would radically change the scenario, as Italy would be required to apply the restrictive measures by virtue of the primacy of EU law.
If Brussels were to accept this request, Europe could enter a new phase in its internal security system, in which the fight against theocratic tendencies would become a common strategic priority rather than the prerogative of individual states. This would be a fundamental step towards the continent's democratic values being defended as one.
