The European Union gave more than €40 million to an NGO that funds Hamas terrorists and has strong ties to the Muslim…

The European Union gave more than €40 million to an NGO that funds Hamas terrorists and has strong ties to the Muslim Brotherhood and Qatar. Here’s what we know. 🧵1/11

It is no secret that Brussels loves funding so-called “humanitarian organisations.” Left-wing activists have leveraged this framework to help flood Europe with millions of illegal migrants. But many are unaware that Islamists are using the same system to promote their extreme ideology among Europe’s Muslim population, while funding terrorists abroad. 🧵 2/11

This is demonstrated by the case of Islamic Relief Worldwide (IRW), a large UK-based humanitarian organisation operating in more than 40 countries. What makes IRW especially significant is its high-level partnerships with United Nations and European Union bodies, which have given it exceptional institutional credibility. 🧵 3/11

Despite this mainstream footprint, IRW is a major part of the Muslim Brotherhood’s European network. One of its founders, Dr. Essam El-Haddad, later served as national security adviser to Muslim Brotherhood-backed Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi. Egyptian authorities alleged that Haddad exploited the IRW platform to finance the Muslim Brotherhood’s activity in the country. 🧵4/11

IRW’s former CEO, Dr. Ahmed Al-Rawi, headed the NGO while simultaneously serving as President of the Federation of Islamic Organizations in Europe (FIOE), later renamed the Council of European Muslims (CEM). Numerous European governments have consistently described it as the Muslim Brotherhood’s umbrella organization on the continent. 🧵5/11

Another person of interest is Dr. Issam El-Bashir. He served as a director of IRW and was previously a member of the European Council for Fatwa and Research (ECFR), a religious body established by leading Muslim Brotherhood figures to issue Islamic legal opinions for Muslims in Europe. 🧵6/11

The UAE designated IRW a terrorist organisation in December 2014, citing ties to the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas. Germany likewise assessed IRW as having “extensive affiliations with the Muslim Brotherhood.” The German Federal Foreign Office ended funding in late 2020, warning that IRW may be supporting Hamas “under the guise of humanitarian aid.” The Dutch government also announced in 2020 that it would cease funding IRW and discontinue cooperation with the organisation. 🧵7/11

Western governments are beginning to acknowledge that Europe is dealing with a serious threat. But why did it take so long? For years, IRW benefited from institutional cooperation with European governmental bodies. The European Union supported IRW projects and its European chapters with more than €40 million under various aid frameworks. 🧵8/11

What this demonstrates is just how vulnerable Europe’s funding mechanisms are to bad-faith actors. It can take years, and tens of millions of euros flowing from European taxpayers to Islamists, before anyone notices. And while European countries have significantly reduced or completely cut funding to IRW, the organisation continues to receive substantial support from Qatar, Kuwait and UN bodies. 🧵9/11

IRW’s own audited accounts show at least £12.61 million in identifiable funding from Qatari organisations between 2009 and 2021. IRW’s 2024 annual report also lists £162,000 from the Embassy of the State of Qatar. Then, in September 2025, Qatar Charity and Islamic Relief Worldwide signed a three-year, $15 million partnership agreement, which Qatar Charity said would be funded equally by both sides. 🧵10/11

IRW’s leadership says the allegations against the organisation stem from “Islamophobia,” insisting that it is “a charity, not a terrorist organization or a chapter of the Muslim Brotherhood.” What is clear is that Europe’s liberal democracies are being used against them by extremists who are more than happy to operate within the limits of European society until they can fundamentally change it. 🧵11/11