Groups directing their programme only to people with an immigrant background are inactive marginal, but conventional parties increasingly request to number on the voice of Muslim communities. fresh local elections in the UK have shown that, especially in urban areas, failure to meet the expectations of Islam's followers can be politically costly, and this is just 1 of many examples of their increasing influences.
Mahamethaneism has become the most dynamic religion in Europe. As early as 1990, there were 30 million of its followers on the continent, with a full of over 44 million in 2010 and now about 50.3 million. Thus Islam became the second most popular religion in Europe, even if Turkey is not included in the statistics.
Gaza in the Islands
The leftist and Muslim environments in the United Kingdom, as in many another Western countries, have held many demonstrations of support for Palestinians attacked by Israel in the Gaza Strip since October. The engagement of any activists is so large that the issue of the war in the mediate East has become their main focus before... the local elections.
Their winner was announced the Labour Party, which made the Conservative organization distinctly distant on a national scale. Labourers have achieved success, among another things, by recovering support at the expense of the Tories in the municipalities a fewer years ago voting unequivocally in a referendum in favour of Britain leaving the European Union. At the same time, however, they lost support in any urban areas dominated by Muslims. The BBC public broadcaster, on the basis of his analyses, claims that social democracy as compared to the 2021 elections lost nearly 21% of the vote in 58 districts in England, in which Muslims presently account for more than 1 5th of the population.
Given the current function of the Greens on the British political scene (only 1 mandate in the home of Commons), they were the biggest winners of this year's local elections. At the same time, no 1 questions the fact that they have gained respective twelve municipal councillors' seats due to the support of Muslims. Firstly, the Green organization consistently criticises Israel, accusing him of committing genocide on the Palestinians and almost straight accusing the British government of complicity in this. Second, the list of the far left group included many not even trying to hide from their extremist views.
The most time the media in the Isles devoted Mothin Ali to becoming a Green Councillor in Leeds, the 3rd largest city in the United Kingdom. Social media announced the recording of Ali celebrating his election success with the shouts “Allah Akbar” and saying “the triumph of the nation of Gaza”. He had previously defended the October Hamas attack on Israel. Due to mass criticism, the fresh Green organization councillor apologized for any of his speeches, but at the same time accused of “islamophobia” people who considered “Allah Akbar” to be a cry associated with muslim extremism. Another interesting case was an independent candidate for mayor of the West Midlands, Ahmed Yakoob, who finished 3rd in the election and placed behind Labour organization and Conservative organization politicians. In his campaign, he claimed to be “a spokesperson for the people of Gaza, Kashmir and Chalistan”.
The failure of votes for the Greens (but besides independent candidates and workers of the Workers Party) caused the leader of the Labourers after the election to reinstate in the rights of a associate 2 parliamentarians suspended in connection with allegations of alleged anti-Semitism. Starmer announced the restoration of the trust of Muslim voters, so he will most likely gotta accept at least part of the demands of The Muslim Vote. It demands of the Labour organization leader among another things: to promise to break military relations with Israel, to argue the bill aimed at the Israeli Boycott Movement (BDS), to accept the boycott of Israel by state institutions, to let Islam's followers to pray in schools or to cut off from the draft law prohibiting the imams from instructing the faithful in matters concerning political elections. If these demands are not met, the Mahamethanes are to proceed to vote on the Green organization and on the Liberal Democrats. Ali Milani, president of the Muslim Labour Platform, pointed to this problem, worried about losing support in large urban agglomerations.
Resignation of Labour organization leader under muslim demands de facto It would mean that another of the "extremely right-wing conspiracy theories" is being realized. Even in February, the left-wing paper "The Guardian", citing the results of the poll, argued that most supporters of the Conservative organization allegedly shared the false belief that Muslims dominated the space of large European cities and the principles of Sharia law. The survey itself appeared at a time erstwhile left-liberal media attacked Tories MP Lee Anderson. He was criticized for naming the London mayor Sadiq Khan's 3rd word as "controlled by Islamists".
At this point, it is worth recalling that extremist Islamists killed nearly a 100 people in the islands in little than 2 decades in loud terrorist attacks. Almost a 1000 Muslims born in the United Kingdom besides left for Syria and Iraq, who decided to join the muslim State's self-proclaimed caliphate. 1 of them was an infamous ISIS executioner acting under the pseudonym "Jihadi John", who, at the age of six, along with his household emigrated from Kuwait to the United Kingdom.
Green Islamists
Muslims in the British Isles clearly followed the way of their fellow believers from continental Europe. Green groups have long been very popular among Islamists and immigrants from the mediate East. While social democrats in any Western European countries have tightened their position due to the failure of support among the native working class, the middle-class supported by the left-left-liberal large city middle-class environmental parties are betting on combating "islamophobia".
Born in Turkish Gaziantepa on the border with Syria Mehmet Kaplan was to keep regular contacts with the leadership of the Swedish branch of Turkish nationalists. At the time (2016), they were heavy criticized by the public for calling for the execution of Armenians by 1 of their leaders. Green politicians themselves admitted to contacts with the Grey Wolves, though he argued that this did not mean sharing all their views. The 2016 mentioned was a kind of breakthrough, due to the fact that Swedes could learn the secret face of the Green Party. Another activist, born in Stockholm Yasri Khan, due to his spiritual convictions before the interview did not shake hands with a reporter of 1 of the tv stations there. Khan was not a serial politician of the left, but was just moving for the board of his then group. 2 years later, an activist from Turkey of 1 of the local Green troops offered in turn the centre-right average coalition organization Muslim voices if the group agreed to build a mosque in 1 of the municipalities.
Links to the Grey Wolves were besides proven to the activists of the German Union of 90/Green. For this group, the substance is more complicated. On the 1 hand, his politicians were to keep in contact with Islamists, and on the another hand, among his national leaders, secularized Muslims can be found, who, for example, support the illegalization of organizations considered to be the legs of Turkish nationalists and Islamists.
In 2020, environmental activists of the left from Muslim communities in Austria criticised the establishment of the Political Islam Documentation Centre, set up by the ruling chadeks. The Green politicians there claimed that the greater threat was "right-wing extremism", and that the institution itself could only lead to further "stimulation of the Muslim community". Interestingly, they were besides criticized for their overly average attitude towards this initiative by the German Greens MP Lama Kaddor, born in Syria, the author of a translation of the Koran addressed to children in Germany.
Organisation
Political influences of Islam in Europe would not grow without just consolidating Muslim communities. It is not just about their engagement in various political groups from right to left, but about their association in organisations that have a direct influence on muslim immigrants. In this respect, the situation is most dangerous in the German-speaking area.
Turkish nationalist Islamists have been operating in Germany for decades, and their movement has, of course, developed thanks to the gastarbeiters. Already in the late 1970s, the Federation of Turkish Democratic Idealists Associations was established, linked to the Turkish National Movement Party. Currently, organisations related to the Grey Wolves movement are considered to be the German facilities of the Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. They are mostly heard at the occasion of the Turkish elections, erstwhile the right is trying to win the votes of the Turks surviving in Germany.
In fresh times, much more media organizations have become German salafites, or Mahamethane calling for a return to sources of Islam. At the end of April, they were outraged by the demonstration in Hamburg, during which they accused German politicians of organizing an attack on Muslims. The top controversy was raised by the slogans of the participants calling for the establishment of an muslim caliphate in Germany.
In the context of the increasing political commitment of Muslims, we must not forget France, a notabene country where the largest muslim community in Europe lives. 3 years ago, 3 leading Mahamethane organizations refused to sign the "extremist charter" announced by French president Emmanuel Macron. This was not done by the association representing Turkish Muslims who did not hide their support for Erdoğan. Thus, they did not accept the declaration of depoliticisation of Islam, equality between women and men, or prohibiting circumcision of women. The Seine Service has been dealing with the influences of the Muslim Brotherhood for any time to finance movements questioning the secular character of the French Republic.
Muslims in the Western planet are increasingly appearing against its (anti)values. Last year’s protests in schools in the Western planet were an outstanding example. In the Belgian region of Wallonia, the communities of Islamists mobilized to argue the thought of left-wing Walloon authorities who wanted to introduce sexual education into schools. Although the government there did not retreat from this idea, the Walloon Minister of Education had to defend her reforms under the protection of the military gendarmerie, and her opponents set fire to respective educational institutions as part of their opposition. A year ago, Muslims were the most active part of the opposition movement to the introduction of LGBT demands into the curriculum in the United States and Canada.
During an abortion referendum held six years ago in Ireland, 1 of the fewer groups opposed to legalising abortions were Muslims. At that time, the muslim Cultural Centre of Ireland reminded of the sanctity of unborn life and the social consequences of abortion. rather peculiar was the fact that Muslims surviving in Ireland paid attention to the ageing of the European population that needs young people.
Not yet.
At least for now, politicians from Muslim backgrounds are successful, mainly taking up the list of conventional parties. In order not to lose their voices, they must send a message straight to the immigrant community. Before this year's elections to the European Parliament, German groups are distributing their material in Arabic for this reason. akin cases are not new, and, for example, in Sweden, they are already common.
However, there are fewer initiatives aimed only at the electorate of immigration origin. The biggest successes so far have become part of the Dutch organization "Think" (DENK), founded by Turkish-born erstwhile Labour organization politicians. The group directing its message to Muslim immigrants is indeed represented by 3 parliamentarians, but is decently isolated in the fragmented Tweede Kamer. In addition, DENK for almost a decade seems to have stood still, and in last year's elections to councils of Dutch provinces registered in only 3 of the 12 regions.
Attempts to set up groups for muslim voters take place not only in the Netherlands. Last year, a pan-European convention was held in France of parties representing the interests of Muslims who, under pro-Palestinian terms, intend to compete in June elections to the European Parliament. However, those attending the convention of the movement from the Netherlands, Spain, Italy and France are rather marginal.
This does not, of course, mean that the situation will not change, especially if Europe continues its immigration policy and its indigenous people do not improve their demographic indicators. With the general radicalisation of political attitudes on the continent, it could be expected that Muslims besides would talk openly about their beliefs and formulate concrete expectations for politicians. The example of Britain clearly shows that there will be no shortage of those willing to get their support.
