Stop playing around with Islamism

Islamism is vicious and harmful and an aggressive ideology. While it is growing roots and gaining momentum in many Western countries, some notable Arab-Muslim nations now openly and fiercely oppose it and expel its proponents and agencies from their lands—this should be a wake-up call for the West.

The United Arab Emirates has recently doubled down on measures to protect the country against the Muslim Brotherhood. While the UAE had already designated the Islamist group as a terrorist organization back in 2014, the UAE Cabinet has now placed 19 individuals and entities operating in the U.K. on its terrorism list due to their affiliation with the Muslim Brotherhood. This designation protects the UAE against any dealings by these U.K. individuals and entities.

Thus, the UAE has not only designated the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist group but precisely targeted networks linked to financing the group in Europe.

As an Islamic nation, the UAE understands deeply and clearly the harmful and destructive nature of the Muslim Brotherhood as an evil terrorist network, driven by ideas that disturb nations. Remarkably, these 19 Muslim Brotherhood members and agencies are flourishing and freely operating in the U.K. and include the Cambridge Education and Training Centre Ltd., Future Graduates Ltd., and Yas for Investment and Real Estate. All appear to have nonthreatening titles. However, the UAE wasn’t deceived, as its Cabinet knows how Islamist terrorists often use seemingly positive images and charitable causes to gain ground to achieve their vicious goals.

Before it’s too late, the West must learn from the Middle Eastern governments that openly and clearly acknowledge the harms of Islamism and Islamists.

In addition to the UAE, several other Arab Muslim countries—including Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Egypt—officially declared the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist organization in 2014, although this aggressive organization still operates in the U.K. and many other Western countries—albeit under other names—largely unopposed.

In the United States., the group benefits greatly under U.S. laws by exchanging resources and exercising influence. President Donald Trump attempted to designate the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization in 2019, but he was opposed by many left-leaning politicians who naïvely claimed that the legal definition of a foreign terrorist organization doesn’t fit the group, as it didn’t—wait for it—use violence to pursue political aims on U.S. soil.

You cannot have a living snake in your home and just hope it won’t bite you.

The Muslim Brotherhood has viciously disrupted many Arab Muslim nations since its infamous inception in 1928 in Egypt, while always using Islamic teachings and commands. Currently, it’s growing beyond the Middle East, deploying a sophisticated politically driven network of more than 1 million members in the Arab World alone. The group has acquired skills to infiltrate Western societies by employing tactics and slogans that appeal to Western values of freedom, equality, and the defense of minorities. To further its infiltration, it doesn’t insist on using its official “Brotherhood” name and changes its tone as circumstances dictate.

Here in the United States., the Islamist Council on American-Islamic Relations operates freely, benefitting greatly from U.S. principles guarding free speech and religious freedom. CAIR’s stated mission is to empower American Muslims in “their participation in political and social activism.” Unsurprisingly, since its founding in 1994, CAIR has been infamous for its reported connections to terrorist groups, to the extent that, in 2014, the UAE explicitly designated CAIR as a terrorist organization, alongside more than 80 other Islamic groups, such as al-Qaeda, ISIS, and Boko Haram. This designation wasn’t a total surprise for many, especially as some of the current leaders of CAIR have been known for their strong ties with two radical Islamist groups: Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood. Shockingly, while CAIR is banned from operating in several Arab Muslim nations, it’s thriving in the United States.

But why is Islamism vicious?

Political Islam is a religio-political ideology that emphasizes religion as an essential part of ruling society. For Islamists, the religion—as they define it—goes beyond spiritual values to cover all aspects of life, especially controlling and governing society. If Muhammad was a prophet and statesman, the logic goes, that society must be governed by Allah’s laws and Muhammad’s example. The goal is for Islam to become a decisive catalyst in politics, uprooting current un-Islamic leadership to bring about what they see as Islam’s victories.

Islamism is collapsing in the Arab world but gaining momentum in the West.

Here is a warning to the West: Don’t play with Islamism. Don’t underestimate its poisonous mechanics. Speak with your official representatives in the U.S. government and seek clear strategies against Islamism and all that it represents. Americans must be aware of what is at stake and pray that President Trump’s second administration can succeed against naïve perspectives by politicians who know nothing about political Islam—before it’s too late.