German state near Berlin bans Islamic Centre, citing Hamas ties

Brandenburg's Interior Minister Michael Stübgen (CDU) has banned an Islamic association outside of Berlin, saying it is associated with the Muslim Brotherhood and the terrorist organization Hamas and promotes anti-Semitism.

Stübgen, in a statement released on Thursday, also said the Islamic Centre Fürstenwalde al-Salam opposes the constitutional order.

The Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamist movement founded in 1928 in Egypt, is banned there.

Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist militia group which started the current Gaza war after it invaded Israel on October 7, is the Brotherhood's branch in Gaza.

"The ban is now being enforced by police," explained a spokesman for the ministry. The group's premises in Fürstenwalde, about 80 kilometres south-east of Berlin, and private residences in Brandenburg and Berlin are being searched.

"We cannot tolerate associations that oppose the constitutional order or the notion of harmony among nations," said Stübgen in the statement.

The "embers of the Stone Age culture of Islamism" must be extinguished at the outset to prevent them from growing, he said.

The announcement comes about 10 days before the September 22 state election in Brandenburg, in which migration and religious extremism are playing a role and the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) is leading in the polls.

Stübgen said in particular "the indoctrination of young people with extremist ideologies in an organized manner" poses risks.

"Treacherous radicalization strategies of extremist organizations and movements" are behind this, he added. "This evil must be tackled at the root," said Stübgen.

The minister had already announced months ago that he intended to take action against the association.