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French Senate strong message to the Muslim Brotherhood

After a long eight-month investigation process, including interviewing over 60 experts on the penetration of Islamism in French society, the French Senate has produced a 244-page very laudable report that will be remembered. Indeed, for the first time in the West, a very important body of the State has deemed the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) a dangerous organisation, whose leaders should be banned from French territory.
In the report, the Commission underlines the growing influence of Islamists over the French Muslim community in the past 20 years. Logically, a large portion of the report is concentrated on the Muslim Brotherhood, that is ranked as the number one Islamist enemy of France. The Commission correctly points out first that Turkey and Qatar are the two main supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood and does mention the dangerous nature of the organisation. While this is far from revolutionary for anyone having looked into the Islamist group born in Egypt in 1928, it is nonetheless extremely important for a western country to writing it officially.
The Commission came up with 44 proposals to remedy the current situation in France and fight off Islamism. The second one is that to combat the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood in France, rather than a blanket ban of the organisation, the Commission proposes a ban of leaders of the MB from France, including global MB leader Yusuf al-Qaradawi. This does not only concern the ones travelling to France from abroad but also the MB leaders living in France. The Commission also hints at banning Qaradawi’s books by stating that it doesn’t understand why its main book “The Lawful and the Prohibited in Islam” is still freely for sale in France while it calls for jihad and preaches rabid antisemitism and antigay sentiment.
The Muslim Brotherhood controls 147 mosques in France, so about 10% of all the mosques in the country. It also controls at least 600 associations. Thus, the Commission recommends not only closing down radical mosques but also the organisations linked to them including charities, sports clubs, cultural centres…
The main problem for French authorities is that the leading institutional interlocutor they have in the Muslim community is the Muslim Brotherhood. The person to blame for this is then French Interior Minister and future President Nicolas Sarkozy who had that grand idea of founding the CFCM (French Muslim Council) in 2003. This basically handed a huge victory to the MB that got a respectable veneer and became overnight the organisation representing all Muslims in France while only a small minority adheres to the Islamist movement. Despite that almost institutional status, the Muslim Brotherhood branch in France, now called the “Musulmans de France”, repeatedly refused to be interviewed by the Commission. Importantly the Commission recommends not renewing the current agreements with foreign countries concerning the training and import of foreign imams to France. In fact, out of the 300 imams sent to work in France by foreign countries, half of them hail from Turkey while the Turkish population represents only about 5% of the total Muslim population in France.
The Commission also stresses the importance of the infiltration process of the MB in the political realm. French President Emmanuel Macron stated back in February, pre Covid-19, that he wanted to make the fight against Islamism a priority of the second half of his mandate. Let’s not take that as a face value since indeed during his presidential campaign back in 2017, Macron had promised he would tackle that issue in his first 100 days. Now three years in, no concrete steps have been taken by his administration to deal with Islamism and the Commission strongly suggests it should happen now rather than later.
However, Macron has just named a new Interior Minister that is supposedly motivated to tackle Islamism and has an interesting background: Gerald Darmanin’s grandfather was an Algerian soldier that fought along the French Free Forces against Hitler’s Germany. Also, the new PM Jean Castex announced in Parliament on July 15th that a bill would be introduced in September to deal with Islamism but no details are available yet. Don’t hold your breath just yet.
While the report is a big step for a western country, affirming on paper the nefarious influence of the Muslim Brotherhood on the French Muslim community, as two wise Senators remarked it is though still not enough to combat the Islamist organisation. Nonetheless, compared for example to the 2014 UK’s Review on the Muslim Brotherhood that was not even published because of political reasons, the French Senate needs to be commended for this first effort
by: Olivier Guitta
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BENEFIT AGM approves 10%...
- March 27, 2025
BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) at the company’s headquarters in the Seef District.
During the meeting, shareholders approved all items listed on the agenda, including the ratification of the minutes of the previous AGM held on 26 March 2024. The session reviewed and approved the Board’s Annual Report on the company’s activities and financial performance for the fiscal year ended 31 December 2024, and the shareholders expressed their satisfaction with the company’s operational and financial results during the reporting period.
The meeting also reviewed the Independent External Auditor’s Report on the company’s consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024. Subsequently, the shareholders approved the audited financial statements for the fiscal year. Based on the Board’s recommendation, the shareholders approved the distribution of a cash dividend equivalent to 10% of the paid-up share capital.
Furthermore, the shareholders endorsed the allocation of a total amount of BD 172,500 as remuneration to the members of the Board for the year ended 31 December 2024, subject to prior clearance by related authorities.
The extension of the current composition of the Board was approved, which includes ten members and one CBB observer, for a further six-month term, expiring in September 2025, pending no objection from the CBB.
The meeting reviewed and approved the Corporate Governance Report for 2024, which affirmed the company’s full compliance with the corporate governance directives issued by the CBB and other applicable regulatory frameworks. The AGM absolved the Board Members of liability for any of their actions during the year ending on 31st December 2024, in accordance with the Commercial Companies Law.
In alignment with regulatory requirements, the session approved the reappointment of Ernst & Young (EY) as the company’s External Auditors for the fiscal year 2025, covering both the parent company and its subsidiaries—Sinnad and Bahrain FinTech Bay. The Board was authorised to determine the external auditors’ professional fees, subject to approval from the CBB, and the meeting concluded with a discussion of any additional issues as per Article (207) of the Commercial Companies Law.
Speaking on the company’s performance, Mr. Mohamed Al Bastaki, Chairman BENEFIT , stated: “In terms of the financial results for 2024, I am pleased to say that the year gone by has also been proved to be a success in delivering tangible results. Growth rate for 2024 was 19 per cent. Revenue for the year was BD 17 M (US$ 45.3 Million) and net profit was 2 Million ($ 5.3 Million).
Mr. Al Bastaki also announced that the Board had formally adopted a new three-year strategic roadmap to commence in 2025. The strategy encompasses a phased international expansion, optimisation of internal operations, enhanced revenue diversification, long-term sustainability initiatives, and the advancement of innovation and digital transformation initiatives across all service lines.
“I extend my sincere appreciation to the CBB for its continued support of BENEFIT and its pivotal role in fostering a stable and progressive regulatory environment for the Kingdom’s banking and financial sector—an environment that has significantly reinforced Bahrain’s standing as a leading financial hub in the region,” said Mr. Al Bastaki. “I would also like to thank our partner banks and valued customers for their trust, and our shareholders for their ongoing encouragement. The achievements of 2024 set a strong precedent, and I am confident they will serve as a foundation for yet another successful and impactful year ahead.”
Chief Executive of BENEFIT; Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi commented, “The year 2024 represented another pivotal chapter in BENEFIT ’s evolution. We achieved substantial progress in advancing our digital strategy across multiple sectors, while reinforcing our long-term commitment to the development of Bahrain’s financial services and payments landscape. Throughout the year, we remained firmly aligned with our objective of delivering measurable value to our shareholders, strategic partners, and customers. At the same time, we continued to play an active role in enabling Bahrain’s digital economy by introducing innovative solutions and service enhancements that directly address market needs and future opportunities.”
Mr. AlJanahi affirmed that BENEFIT has successfully developed a robust and well-integrated payment network that connects individuals and businesses across Bahrain, accelerating the adoption of emerging technologies in the banking and financial services sector and reinforcing Bahrain’s position as a growing fintech hub, and added, “Our achievements of the past year reflect a long-term vision to establish a resilient electronic payment infrastructure that supports the Kingdom’s digital economy. Key developments in 2024 included the implementation of central authentication for open banking via BENEFIT Pay”
Mr. AlJanahi concluded by thanking the Board for its strategic direction, the company’s staff for their continued dedication, and the Central Bank of Bahrain, member banks, and shareholders for their valuable partnership and confidence in the company’s long-term vision.
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