The Muslim Association of Britain (MAB) is a British Sunni Muslim organisation founded in 1997. MAB has been well known for its participation in the protests opposing the Iraq War. More recently, it has been known for promoting Muslim participation in Britain.
It is a member organisation of the Federation of Islamic Organizations in Europe (FIOE).
The newly elected president in 2018 is Anas Altikriti, who is the CEO and founder of The Cordoba Foundation. Prior to him, Dr Omer El-Hamdoon headed the organisation for six and a half years.
Vision
The vision of the Muslim Association of Britain is: "Muslims At Their Best".
Anti-war activities
Along with Stop the War Coalition (StWC) and Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, it has co-sponsored various demonstrations against the 2003 invasion and occupation of Iraq. MAB first started working with the StWC in 2002 when they agreed to merge a demonstration they had planned to mark the anniversary of the Second Palestinian Intifada with a demonstration StWC had planned against the looming Iraq war at the opening of the Labour Party. The march took place under the dual slogans 'Don't attack Iraq' and 'Freedom for Palestine'. According to Altikriti, MAB "spoke to Stop the War and we said to them 'We will join you; however we will not become part of your coalition, we will be a separate and independent entity but we will work together with you on a national basis as part of the anti-war movement.'"
Muslim Brotherhood ties
The group is reported to have had direct ties to the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas; the latter has been proscribed as a terrorist group by the UK government since 2001. In the past, MAB openly identified itself as an Islamist movement. In MAB's Inspire newspaper, produced for the 28 September 2002 anti-war demonstration, an article on the MAB's “Historical Roots and Background” links it explicitly to the Islamist tradition of the Muslim Brotherhood. At the UK Stop the War Coalition conference in January 2003, the Alliance for Workers' Liberty moved a motion to dissociate from MAB. A MAB speaker, replying, said that MAB was proud to be associated with the Muslim Brotherhood. Anas Altikriti, replying in The Times (17 August 2004) to allegations that MAB is linked to the Muslim Brotherhood, described MAB as "an independent British organisation" but admitted "links" with the Brotherhood, which he described as follows: "Links with others extend simply to shared ideas, values and expertise, in which the Brotherhood is indeed rich, with around eight decades of experience."
According to Paul Goodman in The Daily Telegraph, MAB's founder Dr Kamal Helbawy admitted in 2005 “to still being a member of the Brotherhood and has been denied entry to America. It has also been alleged that Dr Azzam Tamimi, its leader, issued communiqués on behalf of Hamas during the 1990s. His views on suicide bombing are unambiguous. Asked if he would carry out such an attack in Israel, he said: ‘Sacrificing myself for Palestine is a noble cause. It is the straight way to pleasing God and I would do it if I had the opportunity.’”
Political endorsements
The MAB encourages its members to vote certain ways in elections—it supported Labour's Ken Livingstone for Mayor of London, Respect in London and the Green Party of England and Wales in South East England. In 2004, its president Anas al-Tikriti stood down to become a European election candidate for Respect in the Yorkshire and the Humber region. He was not elected.
Reaction to 2005 London bombings
The MAB condemned the 7 July 2005 London bombings and joined the StWC in holding a vigil for the victims at the Peace Garden in Euston, London on Saturday, 9 July 2005 and a further solidarity gathering at Russell Square, close to one of the Underground stations targeted, on Sunday, 17 July 2005.
Other activities
In late 2002, the Muslim Association of Britain organised a speaking tour in the UK for Anwar al-Awlaki, including events at the London School of Economics, Imperial College, King’s College and the School of Oriental and African Studies. Al-Awlaki was later killed in a drone strike by the United States.
In 2005, the MAB took control of Finsbury Park Mosque and expelled followers of the extremist cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri whom they accused of "promoting hatred".
The MAB opposed the US extradition request for Babar Ahmad, a UK IT specialist who was accused of operating websites which offered support to the then Taliban government in Afghanistan.
In May 2014, MAB condemned the kidnappings of school girls by Boko Haram.