#Germany #Hamas #MuslimBrotherhood @AktionDHilft Islamic Relief #Aid #Terrorism
The alliance Aktion Deutschland Hilft has suspended membership of the organization Islamic Relief Germany until further notice.
The alliance Aktion Deutschland Hilft has suspended membership of the organization Islamic Relief Germany until further notice.
This was announced by a spokeswoman for the association of organizations for disaster relief. According to the information, this was preceded by an extraordinary meeting of the association's board of directors with representatives of Islamic Relief in Bonn on Thursday.
Islamic Relief will now be given the opportunity to “revise its structures and systematics,” it continues. Islamic Relief describes itself as a "partner of the needy and needy in the world".
But the non-profit association based in Cologne has been criticized for maintaining contacts with fundamentalist Islamists. The federal government responded to a small question from the @FDP last year that there were “significant personal connections” between Islamic Relief and
the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood or organizations that are closely related to it. The Israeli Defense Ministry counts the international office of the organization, Islamic Relief Worldwide, to the funding apparatus of the radical Islamic Hamas.
Islamic Relief rejects the allegations. Both Islamic Relief Germany and Islamic Relief Worldwide are "pure aid organizations and firmly reject terrorism or any form of violence," said a spokesman. The allegation against Israel is the subject of ongoing legal proceedings.
In 2019, Aktion Deutschland Hilft collected donations of 36 million euros. According to information in the annual report, around 2.5 million euros went to Islamic Relief. Appeals for donations are broadcast by @ARD as the official media partner and reach an audience of millions.
The Chairman of the Alliance's Board of Trustees is Federal Foreign Minister Heiko Maas (SPD). The Foreign Office had also sponsored Islamic Relief directly for years. The donations amounting to several million euros triggered an audit by the Federal Audit Office,
which was concluded this year. The examination result was classified as classified. It contained "to a considerable extent ...constitutional protection information".
According to information from Islamic Relief Germany, a project with the Federal Foreign Office expired in March 2020. At this point there was still a payment from the ministry.
"If there had actually been doubts about the legality of the funding, then Islamic Relief Germany would have been faced with claims for repayment and would have to face the charge of illegal appropriation of funding," said a spokesman for the association.
One expects to receive funding from the Foreign Office in the future. Most recently, two officials from Islamic Relief Worldwide resigned on allegations of anti-Semitism. In a press release the organization announced a reform process.
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