Radical Islam on the Rise in Belgium, Threat to Moderates
SputnikNews.com
08.02.2017
An increasing number of mosques and Islamic centers in Belgium are under the influence of Wahhabism, an ultraconservative – often known as radical – form of Islam, according to a new report, which says moderate Muslims are powerless to stand up against.
According to a new report from the Belgian Coordinating Body for Threat Analysis (OCAM), the number of imams preaching Wahhabism, which is the branch of Sunni Islam promoted by Saudi Arabia, is rising — particularly in mosques and Islamic centers in Brussels, Antwerp and Mechelen.
Although still a minority in Belgium, the OCAM report says, the rise in Wahhabism is spreading — not just in Belgium, but throughout Europe — with the help of social media and dedicated TV channels.
Roshan Muhammed Salih, Editor of British Muslim news website 5Pillars, told Sputnik: “Saudi Arabia is throwing a lot of money at TV channels and training a lot of Islamic scholars. They spend about six years in Saudi Arabia and then go back to their home countries and they spread Wahhabism.”
“It [Wahhabism] is a minority form of Islam and it has punched above its weight in terms of its influence in the Islamic world because of its dissemination. Generally, it is considered by lots of Muslims a very intolerant form of Islam in its attitude towards non-Muslims and other Islamic sects, such as Shia Sect and the Sunnis in particular,” Mr. Salih told Sputnik.
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