The Austrian Chancellor was invited to Cairo for the past two days, where he discussed with President Al-Sissi the issue of the war against terrorism and political Islam.
Nehammer had confirmed, during a joint press conference with Sisi at the Ittihadiya presidential palace two days ago, that “our discussions focused on the issue of the war against terrorism”, stressing that his country needed Egyptian expertise in the fight against terrorism as “an important material elements.”
The Egyptian President, in turn, confirmed during the press conference that he informed the Austrian Chancellor of the great success achieved by the government and people of Cairo in the fight against the phenomenon of terrorism and extremism in recent years, with great sacrifices made by Egyptians , and a global vision that covers all the dimensions and causes of this heinous phenomenon.
Practical steps and results
Austrian Government Advisor Prof. Muhannad Khorshid and Scientific Director of the Documentation Center for Political Islam in Austria spoke to “Sky News Arabia” about the most significant repercussions of the Austrian Chancellor’s visit to Egypt and the translation of the results of his discussions with President Sissi.
Khorshid said that it had been agreed between the Egyptian and Austrian parties on the need to cooperate on the file of asylum and legal immigration to eliminate illegal immigration in Europe, and the file of cooperation in the fight against terrorism of all kinds and forms, including political Islam.
On the issue of the war on terror, Khorshid explained that the Austrian Chancellor’s visit to Egypt aims to achieve a number of positive goals and outcomes, including:
Establish institutional cooperation between Austria and Egypt in the fight against terrorism. Intensify cooperation in the exchange of information between the governments of the two countries, in the file of terrorism and the identification of terrorist elements. Extend cooperation to the aspect of research, and not limit it to the security aspect only, by working to create scientific research institutions, with the support of Arab countries that have expertise in the fight against terrorism and political Islam. These research institutions are primarily interested in studying and exposing the plans of the Brotherhood and political Islam in general, and in identifying the ways and means of financing the networks and centers of political Islam, and their plans to attract and attract youth. One of the pressing issues in Austria and Germany together is the need to prepare imams, since most of them belong to associations affiliated with political Islam, and we must work to train imams who present an image of light of Islam as a religion of mercy and dialogue with other religions.
Expose the funding networks of the Brotherhood
In this context, the scientific director of the Documentation Center for Political Islam in Austria noted that most imams come from abroad, without knowledge of European conditions and context, democratic values and human rights. man, and how to activate religious discourse.
Khorshid, who is also a professor of Islamic studies at the University of Münster in Germany, stressed the need for Austria to cooperate more with Egypt in a way that would “discover networks and funding strategies of the Muslim Brotherhood and to get to know them better ”.
He drew attention to the Austrian government’s measures and efforts to combat terrorism, including; Create the Center for Documentation and Research on Political Islam to prepare the necessary research and studies on political Islam and the threat of the Brotherhood.
He warned against the existence of many Islamic associations and centers in Austria and Germany which are under the control of political Islam. This requires the establishment of alternative institutions that embrace the enhancement and consolidation of moderate Islamic thought, compatible with democratic values and human rights values.
Professor Khorshid made a point of stressing, speaking from Vienna to “Sky News Arabia”, that the visit of the Austrian Chancellor “is a very important step in terms of strengthening cooperation with Egypt, and benefiting from its extensive experience in the field of counter -terrorism.”
security check
In the aftermath of the Austrian Chancellor’s visit to Egypt, the newspaper “Kurer”, one of the most widely circulated Austrian newspapers, revealed that Cairo and Vienna were negotiating an agreement to facilitate long-term legal immigration to the markets of Austrian and European labor.
Within the framework of the agreement currently being negotiated, training and qualification operations will be supported in necessary professions, such as the medical care sector, in Egypt, in order to bring qualified and voluntary people to work in Austria. .
The agreement provides for “a security check for those wishing to work in Austria” before traveling, in order to protect Vienna from “the infiltration of political Islam”.
President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi is due to visit Vienna later this year to sign this agreement, as well as another agreement between the two countries on green hydrogen.
Austria had opened judicial information in the file of the financing of associations and institutions linked to the Brotherhood, for terrorism, after police raids targeting more than 100 targets of the group in 4 States on November 9, 2020.
Investigations are still ongoing despite the analysis of hundreds of documents and more than 70 suspects under investigation, and it is unclear when the investigations will conclude.
Austria is waging a bitter war against the political organizations of Islam, at the heart of which is the terrorist Brotherhood, after the bloody events in Vienna in November 2020, which prompted the country to implement a comprehensive strategy to combat terrorism in the country, targeting dozens of institutions, mosques and organizations affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood, after their involvement in terrorist operations was proven, according to intelligence and security reports.
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