France has closed the European Institute of Human Sciences (IESH) over radicalism, alleging the institute promoted jihad and radical Islam as authorities intensify scrutiny of Muslim Brotherhood-linked institutions. On 3 September 2025, ANF reported that the French Council of Ministers formally dissolved the Institut Européen des Sciences Humaines (IESH) based on allegations that the institute promoted radicalism—specifically, radical Islam and the legitimization of armed jihad. The article begins:
French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau announced that the European Institute of Human Sciences (IESH) was dissolved on Wednesday by a decision of the Council of Ministers. In a statement on his X account, the minister said: “The fight against the infiltration of the Muslim Brotherhood movement continues. Today, the European Institute of Human Sciences was dissolved by the Council of Ministers at my request. It advocated radical Islam and legitimized armed jihad. I would like to thank the government agencies that are fighting this vital battle on a daily basis to prevent the Muslim Brotherhood from carrying out its Islamist agenda.” French intelligence agencies revealed that the institute had links to the Muslim Brotherhood in particular. Founded in 1992 by the Union of Islamic Organizations of France, IESH was one of the main training centers for imams in the country, providing education in Islamic theology, Sharia law, and Arabic.
Key Points
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France closed IESH over radicalism following a Council of Ministers decree, with Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau stating that the institute “legitimized armed jihad” and promoted a radical ideology in its programs, including among minors.
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IESH, founded in 1992 and historically associated with the Muslim Brotherhood, had its assets frozen in June 2025 and suspended activities in July 2025 amid government investigations into alleged undeclared foreign funding—particularly from Qatar—and accusations of promoting violence and discrimination.
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The closure forms part of a broader French campaign to counteract the influence of Islamist networks; a government-commissioned report earlier in 2025 warned of a threat to national cohesion from Muslim Brotherhood-linked institutions.
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IESH officials contest the allegations, maintaining that the institute trains French-style imams to prevent radicalism and had fully complied with anti-separatism laws since 2021, while critics warn the closure risks undermining religious freedom and interfaith dialogue.
The Muslim Brotherhood’s IESH: Trans-European Sunni Islamist Education
The Institut Européen des Sciences Humaines (IESH), founded in the early 1990s in rural France, was the preeminent European training institution for teachers and imams linked to the Muslim Brotherhood’s European networks, operating under the auspices of the Federation of Islamic Organizations in Europe (FIOE), now known as the Council of European Muslims (CEM). IESH, alongside its French parent, maintained branches and sister institutions across Europe, including the Europäisches Institut für Humanwissenschaften (EIHW) in Germany and the European Institute of Human Sciences (EIHS) in the UK, all of which share a common Sunni Islamist ideological lineage and have served as hubs for education, clerical training, and religious influence across the continent. The German government’s intelligence reports have identified the EIHW as a key vehicle for spreading Muslim Brotherhood ideology in Germany, while the IESH’s French origin maintains ties to Musulmans de France (MF), historically one of France’s most significant Islamist organizations.
Over the decades, the Qatari financial support—detailed in both Swiss media investigations and the Qatar sponsorship documentary—has enabled the rapid expansion and continuity of IESH’s activities despite regulatory scrutiny, though much of this financial network remains opaque and is subject to ongoing government investigation. The transnational structure of IESH is reinforced by its leadership, with at least a dozen associates linked to the European Council for Fatwa and Research (ECFR), the Muslim Brotherhood’s theological arm in Europe, further embedding the institute within the European Muslim Brotherhood structure.
While IESH officials contend the institute only provides mainstream, contextual religious education, European security agencies and independent researchers have long documented its role in promoting a Sunni Islamist ideology that is strongly critical of European secularism and supportive of global Muslim Brotherhood objectives, as detailed in the GIOR’s extensive investigative coverage of the Council of European Muslims.
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