The ruling, issued by the Second Criminal Circuit of the Cairo Criminal Court in Case No. 11108 of 2026, was published in Egypt’s official gazette on Tuesday. Among the organisations named are the Council of European Muslims, the European Council for Fatwa and Research, the European Council of Imams, the European Council for the Muslim Family and the European Council for Muslim Women.

Other entities include the Muslim Association of Britain, the Muslims of France Foundation, the Swiss Muslim League, the German Islamic Assembly and the European Islamic Students Forum, as well as the European Institute of Human Sciences and its branches.

The decision comes amid Egypt’s intensified campaign against the Muslim Brotherhood and its alleged networks abroad. Several of the European organisations named in the ruling have previously been linked in political and security assessments to the Brotherhood or broader Muslim networks operating across Europe. However, the court ruling, as reported by The Arab Weekly, does not establish that all the listed organisations are affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood.

The move also follows Egypt’s decision to permanently designate the Muslim Brotherhood as a "terrorist organisation", marking a further expansion of Cairo’s efforts to target networks it considers connected to the group beyond its borders.

Under Egyptian law, the ruling carries several consequences, including restrictions on the organisations’ activities, a ban on providing or collecting funds on their behalf, the freezing of assets covered by the decision, and restrictions on membership and promotion.

The ruling is based on Egypt’s Law No. 8 of 2015 regulating terrorist entities and individuals. The legislation allows organisations and individuals to remain on the list for up to five years, subject to possible renewal through the competent judicial authorities.

The inclusion of European-based religious councils and Islamic associations extends Egypt’s counterterrorism measures beyond individuals and groups operating inside the country, targeting what Cairo considers the organisational, financial and ideological networks supporting extremist movements abroad.

Source: Arab Weekly