European Council for Fatwa and Research


The European Council for Fatwa and Research is a Dublin-based private foundation, founded in London on 29–30 March 1997 on the initiative of the Federation of Islamic Organizations in Europe. The council is a largely self-selected body, composed of Islamic clerics and scholars, presided over by Yusuf al-Qaradawi.
WWW e-cfr.org/en

Goals and methodology

The stated goal of the ECFR is to issue fatwas that serve the needs of Muslims in Europe. The ECRF draws on all major schools of Sunni law as well as other traditional legal principles, such as objectives of sharia, concern for the public good, local custom, and the prevention of harm, in an effort to derive fatwas suitable for life in Europe. This methodology is intended to address situations which would be difficult to manage under a stricter interpretation of Islamic law, including using the doctrine of darura to permit traditionally prohibited actions. The rulings of ECFR are nonbinding and are adopted through social acceptance.

Membership

As of 2007, roughly two-thirds of the ECFR's 35 members resided in North America and Europe and the rest were from Muslim-majority countries. Yusuf al-Qaradawi, a prominent Egyptian-born jurist residing in Qatar, has served as the chairman of the ECFR since its founding. The composition of the membership was intended to buttress legitimacy of the Council both in the West and in the Muslim world.

Positions and reception

A 2001 ECRF ruling allowed a female convert to Islam to remain married to her non-Muslim husband, based in part on the existence of European laws and customs which guarantee women the freedom of religion. Rulings of this kind have been welcomed by some, but also criticized by others as being overly eclectic in legal methodology and having potential to negatively impact the interpretation of sharia in Muslim-majority countries.
In August 2005, The Wall Street Journal reported that although the council's stated goal was to help Muslims integrate into European society, it is dominated by non-Europeans who have little grasp of what is acceptable in the West. A member of the Council cited the anti-Semitic forgery known as the Protocols of the Elders of Zion in a position paper arguing that Muslim families are under threat in Europe. It also reported that "the council is part of a web of organizations that spread ideology close to the Muslim Brotherhood throughout Europe".

Cooperation with other Islamic organisations in Europe

  1. Al-Maktoum Charity Organisation, Dublin, Ireland
  2. Millî Görüş
  3. Federation of Islamic Organisations in Europe
  4. European Islamic Council in Belgium

Members of the ECFR

  1. Yusuf al-Qaradawi, President of ECFR
  2. Faisal Maulawi, Vice-President.
  3. Hussein Mohammed Halawa, General Secretary
  4. Dr. Ahmad Jaballah
  5. Dr. Ahmed Ali Al-Imam
  6. Mufti Ismail Kashoulfi
  7. Ahmed Kadhem Al-Rawi
  8. Ounis Qurqah
  9. Rashid al-Ghannushi
  10. Abdallah Bin Bayyah
  11. Abdul Raheem Al-Taweel
  12. Abdullah Ibn Ali Salem
  13. Abdullah Ibn Yusuf Al-Judai,
  14. Abdul Majeed Al-Najjar
  15. Abdullah ibn Sulayman Al-Manee'
  16. Dr. Abdul Sattar Abu Ghudda
  17. Dr. Ajeel Al-Nashmi
  18. Al-Arabi Al-Bichri
  19. Dr. Issam Al-Bashir
  20. Ali Qaradaghi
  21. Dr. Suhaib Hasan Ahmed
  22. Tahir Mahdi
  23. Mahboub-ul-Rahman
  24. Muhammed Siddique
  25. Muhammad Ali Saleh Al-Mansour
  26. Dr. Muhammed Al-Hawari
  27. Mahumoud Mujahed
  28. Dr. Mustafa Cerić
  29. Nihad Abdul Quddous Ciftci
  30. Dr. Naser Ibn Abdullah Al-Mayman
  31. Yusf Ibram
  32. Salah Soltan
  33. Salem Abdelmeguid
  34. Jasser Auda
Half of the members are from the European continent and half are from the Arabian Peninsula, Northern Africa or Northern America. This is a breach of the internal rules of the ECFR, as members not residing in Europe "must not constitute more than 25% of the total members of the Council at any one time".