Jeremy Corbyn opens the door to group run by Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas supporter, say critics

At the launch of his Race and Faith manifesto today, Jeremy Corbyn said his “door will be open” to the Muslim Association of Britain - a group run by a Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas supporter.

The Muslim Association of Britain is currently run by Anas Altikriti, who is its president. Altikriti also runs The Cordoba Foundation, whish has been described as a “political front for the Muslim Brotherhood” by former Prime Minister David Cameron.

In 2014, the group had its bank account closed by HSBC because it posed too much ‘risk’ to the company.

The Muslim Brotherhood is a global movement with political parties in many Middle Eastern countries which aims to implement sharia law.

Altikriti, who set up the Cordoba Foundation, is a supporter of Palestinian terror group Hamas who once said: ‘the Brotherhood supports Hamas. I believe that if you are occupied you need to fight back’

He has called for Muslim groups to boycott Holocaust Memorial Day, claiming it's backed by a ‘pro-Zionist lobby’.

The MAB itself has also attracted attention, after it previously published an article promoting the blood libel theory on its website.

The MAB has also been beset by links to the Muslim Brotherhood, according to an independent government sanctioned report in 2015. The report said that the Brotherhood ‘dominated’ the MAB at one point.

Furthermore, a former spokesperson and member of the MAB, Azzam Tamimi has been repeatedly caught for his support for Hamas and his advocating of terrorism against Israel: “If fighting for your homeland is terrorism, I take pride in being a terrorist." He added that "Israel does not belong to my homeland and must come to an end.”

Commenting, Andrew Percy, Vice Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group Against Antisemitism, said:

“It beggars belief that in a speech where Corbyn was preaching about the virtues of anti-racism, he opened the door to working with a group that has links to extremists such as the antisemitic Hamas.

“It is no surprise that he has broken his promise of a ‘kinder, gentler politics’ due to his repeated failure to tackle antisemitism in the Labour Party and his failure to unite communities.

“Corbyn’s failure to take action on language, views and associations that are not fit for public life show yet again he’s unfit for office.”

ENDS

Notes to Editors

• Corbyn said his door was open to the Muslim Association of Britain. ‘And so in government our door will be open to all faith leaders to come and talk to us and make representations of behalf of their communities. To those from the Muslim Council of Britain and the Muslim Association of Britain will be very welcome (Labour Race and Faith Manifesto Launch, 26 November 2019, archived).

The President of the Muslim Association of Britain is renowned for his support for the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas.

• Anas Altikriti is the President of the MAB. He is repeatedly quoted on their website as being the President of the organisation.

• Altikriti is the CEO and Founder of the Cordoba Foundation which has been described as a ‘political front for the Muslim Brotherhood’. David Cameron, while in opposition, accused the Cordoba Foundation, run by Anas Altikriti, of being a front for the Muslim Brotherhood (Daily Telegraph, 19 October 2014, link).

• The group had its bank account closed in 2014 by HSBC due to the ‘risk’ it posed. ‘Other HSBC clients who suddenly fell outside the bank's "risk appetite" included the Cordoba Foundation, a think tank which says that it specialises in building relations between the Muslim world and the West’ (BBC News, 28 July 2015, link).

• Altikriti has openly stated that ‘the Brotherhood supports Hamas’.  ‘the Brotherhood supports Hamas. I believe that if you are occupied you need to fight back’ (Jerusalem Post, 9 September 2016, link).

• Altikriti set up the British Muslim Initiative with a senior Hamas operative. Altikriti also co-founded a group called the British Muslim Initiative with a senior operative in Hamas, Mohammed Sawalha, and a Hamas “special envoy,” Azzam Tamimi (Jerusalem Post, 9 September 2016, link).

• Altikriti called for a boycott of Holocaust Memorial Day. He argued that ‘With its decision to attend Holocaust memorial day, the Muslim Council of Britain seems to have failed to consider the plight of the Palestinians…Why did the MCB apparently give in to the pressure and vilification of the pro-Zionist lobby’ (The Guardian, 4 December 2007, link).

The Muslim Association of Britain posted a blood libel conspiracy on its website.

• The Muslim Association of Britain posted a blood libel conspiracy on its website. The Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet published an article alleging that Israeli soldiers kidnapped Palestinian civilians and stole their organs, before returning their mutilated bodies to their families. The MAB reposted this on their blog (Community Security Trust, 17 September 2009, link).

Former Spokesperson of the MAB Azzam Tamimi has promoted terrorism.

• Azzam Tamimi has been repeatedly caught for his support for Hamas and his advocating of terrorism against Israel. ‘If fighting for your homeland is terrorism, I take pride in being a terrorist." He added that ‘Israel does not belong to my homeland and must come to an end’ (The Times, 9 July 2004, link).