The Federation of Islamic Organizations In Europe (FIOE) has reported on a family camp held by its Danish affiliated and attended by Muslim Brotherhood spokesman Kemal Helbawy (aka Kemal al-Halabawi ) in which Helbawy urges families to view Palestine and Gaza as part of the “whole Islamic body.” According to the FIOE report:
The Danish Islamic Council held its first family camp under the motto of “brotherhood and cooperation” from the 8th to the 10th of October 2010 on the outskirts of Vig north of the capital city of Copenhagen. The conference opened with recitals from the Holy Quran, followed by a speech from Abdel Hamid Alhamdy the President of the Council where he welcomed the guests and participants, especially Dr.Kamal Al Helbawy and his spouse Zeinab Mostafa, who both work in the field of da’wah, and come from London. He stressed the need of Islamic up-bringing in families, in a world witnessing an increase in the number of dysfunctional families and loose morals. He pointed out the role played by Muslims in Denmark in defending the sanctity of the Holy Prophet (PBUH), taking heart from the role played by youth which was prominent in preparing for the camp. He pointed out that choosing the topic of the family for the first camp in Denmark only served to portray the importance placed on the role of the family in society by Muslims, considering it the primary nucleus and comparing it to the heart in the body; if it is healthy then the society is healthy and if it sickens then society is corrupted! The family also teaches social ties and blood ties, which we wish to develop so that they reach the whole Islamic body, including occupied Palestine and Gaza under siege. He finished his speech with a prayer and wishes to all participants for success during the camp and after it….The two honorary guests Dr.Kamal Alhelbawy and his wife Zeinab chose their contribution to be far from the regular and conventional long speeches; instead they broached issues and encouraged open dialogue. Most of the issues were related to brotherhood and the behavior it entailed……..The Closing The camp ended with valuable advice from Dr.Halabawy followed by a closing speech from the President of the Council where he announced that the camp would be held every six months, so that the family gathering could occur twice a year. The medals were distributed to the scouts and some token gifts for the honorary guests. Group pictures were taken of the attendees and the camp. The attendees then proceeded to leave the camp after taking a positive charge of energy which they wrote about in emails received later on. On the sidelines of the camp Brothers from the city of Nantes in France visited the camp and participated in many of the events of the second day as well as the evening songs. Dr.Helbawy helped them to collect money for building a mosque in their city and God blessed them with the aid of the charitable people
According to his resume, Helbawi is the former official spokesperson of the Muslim Brotherhood in the West, one of the founders of the World Assembly of Muslim Youth (WAMY), and one of the founders of the Muslim Council of Britain, a U.K. umbrella organization comprised largely of Muslim Brotherhood organizations. He is currently the director of the London-based Center for the Study of Terrorism (CFSOT) which purports to be a think-tank describing itself as follows:
…an independent research and consultancy organisation, dedicated to the in-depth study of Islamic resurgence, democratisation and extremism in the Muslim world. Working with high-quality primary sources, CFSOT delivers unique information and analysis to its clients. The centre publishes a monthly journal and provides training and courses on terrorism-related issues as well as bespoke consultancy services.
In October 2006, the U.S. government prevented Helbawy from attending an NY conference on the Muslim Brotherhood in the U.S.
A report on FIOE by the NEFA Foundation describes the organization as follows:
The Federation of Islamic Organizations in Europe (FIOE) claims to be an independent organization representing the interests of Muslims in Europe. In reality, the FIOE is an umbrella group that comprises the global Muslim Brotherhood in Europe. Strong links connect FIOE’s leadership central institutions and member organizations to the Brotherhood, as well as to Saudi Arabia. Funding for the FIOE is derived largely from Gulf sources, including some of the ruling families of the United Arab Emirates. The FIOE has strong ties to Hamas and Hamas fund-raising organizations, and some FIOE member organizations show evidence of links with Al-Qaida. The FIOE recently opened a headquarters office in Brussels and has had some success in positioning itself as a “dialog partner” for the EU and other important institutions.
In March 2006, a Danish newspaper identified Danish Imams who who were scheduled to attend a conference in Bahrain, convened by Global Muslim Brotherhood leader Youssef Qaradawi to discuss the Danish cartoon controversy. The list included the now notorious Abu Laban but also Jihad Al-Farra, head of the Dansk Islamisk Rad (Danish Islamic Council).