US Muslim Brotherhood Leader Scheduled To Speak At Tennessee Mosque

Local media is reporting that US Muslim Brotherhood leader Jamal Badawi is scheduled to speak in November at the controversial Islamic Center of Murfreesboro.According to a WZTV Fox 17 report:

October 22 2013 MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – There’s a new concern tonight about a religious facility that’s dealt with years of controversy. That concern involves the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro and a Muslim speaker who’s going to be there next month. November 3 the Islamic Center is hosting a forum called God’s Books. It includes scholars from various faiths, but there’s an email circulating with specific concerns about one of them, a man mosque opponents say has ties to terror. Big questions, and Iman Ossama Bohloul plans to discuss them all next month inside the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro. Bohloul invited 2 Christian scholars and a Rabbi to speak, but he’s getting criticism for his Islamic speaker, former Canadian professor Dr. Jamal Badawi.

Critics say Badawi has connections with radical Islam. J. Lee Douglas’ group the 9/12 Project believes Badawi’s appearance is a sign the Murfreesboro mosque is more than it advertises. In particular, he’s concerned about reports on anti-Islamic websites that claim Badawi was an unindicted co-conspirator in a federal terrorists funding case.

It’s a claim to date no member of law enforcement has publicly agreed with and we did some checking on Badawi with the U.S. Attorney’s Office. A spokesperson there tells FOX17 NEWS there are no alarms raised by any law enforcement agency concerning the Islamic speaker. Imam Bohlol says it’s silly for critics to say his mosque is hiding anything, considering everyone is invited to hear Badawi speak. Terrorist funding case opponents’ link to Badawi began in Dallas in the early 2000s.

We reached out to that U.S. Attorney’s Office to find out more about what role, if any, Badawi might have had in the case. We are still waiting for their response and will let you know if there’s anything concerning.”

Jamal Badawi is a leader in many of the most important Global Muslim Brotherhood organizations including the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR Canada), the Fiqh Council of North America, the Muslim American Society (MAS), the European Council for Fatwa and Research and the International Union of Muslim Scholars.  Documents released during the Holy Land Foundation terrorism financing trial indicate that he was (and probably still is), a member of the leadership structure of the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood.

In January 2012, we reported on the the start of construction of the new facility. An earlier post had reported that according to the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), a part of the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood, one of its officials met with the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro (ICM) board “to develop strategies for the community to overcome the challenges they currently face while building their mosque.” Another earlier post discussed the original plans for the facility and reported exclusively that the reading list of the ICM suggested ties to the Global Muslim Brotherhood. In July 2012. the US Justice Department filed a lawsuit seeking to force a Tennessee county to act promptly on the mosque’s application for an occupancy permit.