British media is reporting that Dr Anas Al-Shaikh Ali, Academic adviser to the London office of the International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT) has been awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE), the 4th highest of fives classes of British order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by King George V. According to the British government, the OBE is awarded for “a distinguished regional or country-wide role in any field through achievement or service to the community;including notable practitioners known nationally.” An online biography provides biographical details on Dr. Ali:
Dr Anas al-Shaikh Ali is currently Chairman of the Association of Muslim Social Scientists (AMSS UK) (www.amssuk.com ) and Academic Advisor to the International Institute of Islamic Thought and Director of its Translation Department. He is also the IIIT’s English Publications Senior Editor. (www.iiituk.com). Dr Al-Shaikh Ali has a PhD in American Studies and has taught Literature and Translation at universities in the Middle East. He is a founding Trustee of FED 2000 UK (for Education and Development), a founding Trustee and former Chair of the Forum Against Islamophobia and Racism (FAIR www.fairuk.org ), Executive Director of Legacy Publishing, and on the Advisory Board of Islamica Magazine. Dr. Al-Shaikh Ali is a member of the Management Board of Alwaleed Bin Talal Centre of Islamic Studies, University of Cambridge. He is former Deputy Rector and Chairman of the Planning Committee of the Oxford Academy for Advanced Studies.
According to a recent Hudson Institute report, IIIT was founded in the U.S. in 1980 by important members of the Global Muslim Brotherhood who wished to promote the “Islamization of Knowledge.” IIIT was associated with the now defunct SAAR Foundation, a network of Islamic organizations located in Northern Virginia that was raided by the Federal government in 2003 in connection with the financing of terrorism. The organization appeared to withdrawn from public view following the 2003 raids, but seems to be enjoying a renaissance of late. IIIT has a network of affiliates located in Europe, Africa, the MIddle East, and Asia. Although little is known about the activities of these IIIT affiliates, recent posts have discussed plans by IIIT to construct colleges in Bosnia and Lebanon. A report in the Washington Post from June 2007 indicated that IIIT and the SAAR Foundation were still under investigation by the Justice Department.