The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB), a U.K. umbrella organization dominated by Muslim Brotherhood groups, has announced that it sponsored a youth tour to Bosnia-Herzegovina facilitated by Bosnian Grand Mufti and European Muslim Brotherhood leader Mustafa Ceric. According to the report:
A group of young British Muslims concluded today a high-level fact-finding tour of Bosnia-Herzegovina. Facilitated by the Muslim Council of Britain’s Youth Committee, the twelve-member delegation visited an array of civil society and faith organisations with a view to take back examples of good practice for promoting cohesion and inter-faith co-operation. The group was hosted by His Eminence, the Grand Mufti of Bosnia, Dr Mustafa Ceric, who gave a wide-ranging overview of reconciliation efforts between ethnic and religious communities in the post-conflict era of Bosnia-Herzegovina. MCB’s Youth Committee aims to take back examples to the UK. Mujibul Islam, the Committee’s Chair said: “Muslims in this former war-torn country are now at the forefront of re-building a modern, multi-cultural and multi-faith European country. We were all truly amazed at the level of education, dynamism, scholarship and dignity amongst young people and women in this nation. As young people growing up in Britain, with our own unique challenges, we wanted to observe and share experiences with the people of Bosnia.” The delegation also met officials from the British Council; the Mayor and Deputy Mayor in the city of Cazin (bordering Croatia); the Mufti of Mostar (a power-sharing city divided along ethnic/religious lines); An-Nahla Educational Centre; a lecture on the history of Bosnia by Professor Ahmet Alibasic from the Faculty of Islamic Studies; visits to libraries, schools and Islamic Faculties, museums, orphanages, Imams and teachers.]
Dr. Ceric is tied to the global Muslim Brotherhood through his membership in the European Council for Fatwa and Research (ECFR), headed by Brotherhood leader Youssef Qaradawi and by his participation in the U.K.-based “Radical Middle Way” consisting of a wide range of associated scholars representing the global Muslim Brotherhood. Several earlier posts have discussed Dr. Ceric’s increasing visibility and importance within the global Muslim Brotherhood. The MCB notice also says that the trip was supported by the Islamic Forum of Europe and Iqra International, also tied to the global Muslim Brotherhood.