
Inside Dublin Islamic centre: pressure on ‘senior official' to step down amid claims over staff links to banned group
Islamic Cultural Centre of Ireland
(ICCI) in Clonskeagh, Dublin, has been asked in internal correspondence 'to step down in favour of the public interest and to prevent further harm' as the crisis deepens at Ireland's largest mosque.
In a message, which has been widely circulated among members of the Muslim community, Dr Eid Zaher, who is secretary to the centre's imam, Sheikh Hussein Halawa, says the crisis at the centre is 'due to the intransigence of a senior official in responding to requests of the board of the Al Maktoum Foundation – a foundation that for over 30 years has offered invaluable services to Islam and Muslims in Ireland'.
He also appeals to 'wise and thoughtful members of the Muslim community in Ireland to kindly encourage this senior official to step down'.
Addressing the 'senior official' directly, he says it is 'vital to place the general interest of Muslims in Ireland above personal, short-term interests'. He continues, 'I find it my duty to issue this heartfelt and brotherly appeal.'
READ MORE
The letter does not identify the senior official in question.
The controversy centres on a dispute between the board of the Al Maktoum Foundation and a group of prominent officials in the centre and their supporters.
Concerns have been raised about the management of charitable donations, including funds raised for Gaza and the use of cash payments. The foundation has also raised concerns about alleged links between officials and the Muslim Brotherhood, an international Islamist organisation that the United Arab Emirates and other countries has banned as a terrorist organisation.
Dr Zaher expresses his 'deep thanks and heartfelt appreciation to the Al Maktoum Foundation and its dedicated board members for their generous contributions and blessed efforts over the past years,' where the centre is concerned. He adds: 'We remain hopeful that you will continue your support for the Islamic Cultural Centre of Ireland.'
The centre was
closed abruptly
following an alleged physical altercation at a meeting on April 19th to which the Garda was called. However, its
national school
, which is attended by more than 400 children, remains open.
Dr Ali Selim was the centre's spokesman for more than 20 years until last September, when he stood down. He said this was not related to current events but he was not free to talk about the reasons as 'we have a non-disclosure agreement, so we can't talk about it'.
Two weeks ago he was appointed manager for media affairs at the centre by the Al Maktoum Foundation.
Regarding the possible relationship between the Muslim Brotherhood – which is banned as a terrorist organisation in countries such the UAE, where the Al Maktoum Foundation is based, as well as in Egypt and Saudi Arabia but not in Ireland – Dr Selim says he has 'never been a member' and has 'never attended any of their meetings'.
As to whether other staff at the centre could be members, he responds: 'It is very hard to answer this question. None of them has ever expressed to me that he is a member of the group but, again, they never say.'
Ali Selim, manager for media affairs at the Islamic Cultural Centre of Ireland. Photograph: Alan Betson
Allegations have previously been made that Sheikh Halawa, who is Egyptian, has links to the Muslim Brotherhood but he has denied any such relationship.
Halawa came to Ireland from Egypt in 1995 having studied theology at Al-Azhar University in Cairo and gained his doctorate in Islamic studies at the International Islamic University in Islamabad, Pakistan. His son Ibrahim was released from jail in Egypt in October 2017 after being held there, untried, for more than four years.
[
Ibrahim Halawa release: 'Dad, Dad! I left prison! Dad, I'm free'
Opens in new window
]
Sheikh Halawa is also general secretary of the European Council for Fatwa and Research in which role he provides theological guidance (fatwa) on issues facing Muslims in Europe. Its former president, Egyptian-born but Qatar-based Yusuf al-Qaradawi, who died in 2022 aged 96, was claimed to have been a member of the Muslim Brotherhood. He denied this.
A controversial theologian and scholar, al-Qaradawi was banned from the US in 1999, the UK and Ireland in 2008, and France in 2012.
The Muslim Brotherhood, founded in Egypt in 1928, is a Sunni Muslim organisation set up with the aim of establishing the Koran as sole reference point for ordering life in the family, community and state. It was outlawed in Egypt until the so-called Arab Spring of 2011 and the removal of then prime minister Hosni Mubarak. It was outlawed again by the current Egyptian regime in September 2013.
In 2015 the Muslim Brotherhood was designated a terrorist organisation in Bahrain, Egypt, Russia, Syria, Saudi Arabia and, significantly where the Clonskeagh centre is concerned, the United Arab Emirates, where the Al Maktoum Foundation is based.
Dr Selim explained this week how complaints from Muslims in Ireland had been received by the board of the Al Maktoum Foundation in Dubai about alleged financial irregularities and management concerns at the centre.
[
Concerns raised over alleged financial irregularities and links with extremist ideology at Dublin mosque
Opens in new window
]
Such allegations are not new and were addressed in an
Irish Times article of March 2018
, which reported that 'the Islamic Cultural Centre in Dublin has been repeatedly criticised by its auditors for its treatment of charitable cash donations and money received under Islamic rules'.
It continued: 'The auditors of the Al Maktoum Foundation, the company that runs the centre, have expressed concern over a period of years that the cash is not being properly recorded and is being held at the centre rather than banked. Deloitte has also raised concerns about payments made using the cash not being adequately recorded, and over the tracking of money loaned to staff and people in receipt of welfare payments.'
Following the more recent complaints, chairman of the Al Maktoum Foundation, Muhammad Dahi, and a director of the board of management, Dr Zahid Jamil, visited Ireland 'three times so far. Last October, December [and] again, a couple of weeks ago,' Dr Selim said.
'He appointed an internal auditor – a graduate of the [UCD] Smurfit School – to look into all business and examine every issue. He had a meeting recently ... in the ICCI.'
Dr Jamil invited 'parents of children who attended the [Koranic] school to explain to them the situation, what happened'.
This school is privately run by the centre and is completely separate from the national school, which is State funded.
Founded in 1999 and named the Nur-ul-Huda School, it is a religious school, intended to teach its roughly 2,000 Muslim pupils – at a fee of €250 each – about the tenets of Islam. It has a principal, a deputy principal and about 40 teachers.
Imam Hussein Halawa. Photograph: Nick Bradshaw
As part of their investigation following complaints, last November the Al Maktoum board also asked the centre's administration to seek data details from the Koranic school. The school said that, because of data protection legislation, they could not supply such details.
The centre's administration pointed that this only applied if the data was being supplied to a third party and that as the school was part of the centre, the administration was entitled to it. The school was told that 'basically you are a department in the institution so you do not own the database, the database is owned by the institution,' as Dr Selim recalls it.
'The school refused to give them the data – the request was made last November,' he says. 'They refused three weeks ago – the school principal, deputy principal and a number of teachers submitted an immediate resignation last Friday and they came to work the following day and the ICCI did not allow them to work, which caused a higher level of tension.'
Dr Jamil called the meeting of parents of pupils attending the Koranic school for Saturday, April 19th. 'A large number of people turned up,' and Dr Jamil decided on a second meeting to accommodate the numbers.
At that first meeting 'he was interrupted, disturbed, he was intimidated and he was subject to harassment. The first meeting went almost to the end – more than two hours – despite this. He invited people to the second meeting; people came in. They verbally attacked him and attempted physically to attack him. We had to protect him. The gardaí were called. They surrounded him and escorted him outside the premises,' says Dr Selim.
'After that he said that he received information that people were planning a demonstration and he expressed his concern about the safety and security of people in the place. So he decided to shut down the place until investigations are over. The entire complex is shut down, only open for the Muslim national school.'
As to when the complex might reopen, that is 'up to the internal investigator', says Dr Selim said.
The 5,000sq m centre, funded by the al-Maktoums, is one of the largest in Europe. It cost £5 million to build in 1996 and contains a main mosque that holds more than 1,700 people as well as two smaller prayer halls.
It also has a Muslim national school, a sports hall, a library, an exhibition hall, an information centre, offices, a women's education and social centre, a shop, a restaurant, eight apartments and a mortuary.
It was designed by architects Michael Collins & Associates and won a Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland award in 1997. Set on 3.5 acres, it was Ireland's second purpose-built mosque, after one built in Ballyhaunis, Co Mayo, in 1987, which was opened in 1996 by the then president of Ireland Mary Robinson.
The Clonskeagh centre is the busiest Islamic centre in Ireland, with a staff of about 10 in administration, three in maintenance and four in security, as well as the principal, deputy principal and about 40 teachers at the Koranic school. It receives an annual budget from the Al Maktoum Foundation of €2.5 million.
Staff continue to be paid while the internal investigation is under way.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Irish Sun
2 days ago
- The Irish Sun
Israel to allow foreign aid to parachute into Gaza but continues bombardment despite growing global pleas for ceasefire
ISRAEL will allow foreign aid to parachute into Gaza despite continuing its relentless onslaught. Horror scenes of mass starvation have sparked an Advertisement 7 A mother cradles her 18-month child in Gaza where fears of famine are growing Credit: Getty 7 Smoke billows over destroyed buildings after an Israeli airstrike Credit: AFP 7 Palestinians gather to receive food from a charity kitchen Credit: Reuters 7 A boy cries as he tries to receive food in the under siege territory Credit: Getty Aid groups warned this week Palestinians are on the brink of famine with one in five children suffering from malnutrition, with UN warning civilians are becoming "walking corpses". But Israel has denied responsibility, Aid drops into the territory will be managed by Jordan and the United Arab Emirates, an Israeli official said. Despite the concession, Advertisement Read more on Gaza here Explosions from fresh overnight strikes rocked the besieged coastal strip, with Israeli Defence Forces troops continuing to advance on Hamas lairs. The terrorists are still hiding out within civilian communities after the cornered Islamist group repeatedly rejected ceasefire terms. French president Macron held emergency talks over the crisis today with UK PM Sir Keir Starmer who called conditions in the 25-mile enclave 'unspeakable and indefensible'. Advertisement Most read in The US Sun Starmer has already declared statehood is Palestinians' 'inalienable right' but has yet to officially declare recognition. Humanitarian workers have reported seeing children 'emaciated, weak and at high risk of dying' without urgent treatment, Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UNRWA relief agency said. Parish priest Gabriel Romanelli is being treated after Israel hit Holy Family Catholic Church in Gaza Starmer said: 'We are witnessing a humanitarian catastrophe. 'The suffering and starvation unfolding in Gaza is unspeakable and indefensible. While the situation has been grave for some time, it has reached new depths and continues to worsen.' Advertisement Gaza's health ministry - which is controlled by Hamas - said 82 of 113 hunger-related deaths recorded there so far are Palestinian children. But scores of desperate, innocent civilians have been killed queuing for food aid amid claims of IDF atrocities. US and Israeli negotiators in Qatar walked out of ceasefire talks on Thursday after Hamas submitted a list of 'impossible' demands. They reportedly included the release of more prisoners in exchange for hostages, including captured commandos involved in the October 7 attacks. Advertisement He added that the terror group's 'lack of desire to reach a ceasefire in Gaza' was the reason US negotiators had been recalled. 7 Smoke and flames rise from a residential building hit by an Israeli strike Credit: Reuters 7 Injured Palestinians are transported to hospitals Credit: Getty Advertisement 7 Thousands gather in Tel Aviv to protest the ongoing attacks on Gaza Credit: Getty Thousands gathered in Tel Aviv's Habima Square on Thursday for a protest demanding Israel's strongman PM Benjamin Netanyahu end the Gaza war and return the hostages. Netanyahu has been accused of prolonging the bloodbath to save his political skin - and deflect blame for the security lapses which enabled Hamas to carry out the October 7 horror. The rally, which began with a moment of silence for fallen soldiers, was joined by parents of hostages, parents of soldiers, and reservists demanding and end to the war. Advertisement Retired military commander Major General Noam Tibon said at the rally: 'In the beginning, this was a just war after 22 months, this war no longer has a security purpose. 'The war has turned into a political war, and while the best of us are falling in Gaza.'

The Journal
2 days ago
- The Journal
Debunked: A new sculpture in Drogheda does not signal an Islamic takeover of Ireland
A NEW SCULPTURE in Drogheda featuring a star and a moon has led to baseless claims that an Islamic takeover is under way in the country. While the star and crescent moon motif is often used to symbolise Islam, the sculpture is part of a series which the artist says represents the astronomical alignment of sites in the Boyne valley. View this post on Instagram A post shared by VCL Consultants (@vclconsultants) 'This monstrosity of a thing here was put up by a Nigerian national who appeared in Drogheda somehow, claiming to represent the people of Drogheda,' a man shouts in a video viewed more than 227,000 times since it was posted to Facebook on 15 July. 'A Nigerian African has decided to put an Islamic symbol on the border of Drogheda.' The man blames Sinn Féin for the sculpture, which he says is a 'declaration of war'. 'This is an attack on the white, Christian, Irish people,' he bellows. The man goes on to say that the sculpture is a sign that Muslims will take control of the country within months, and references theories about fluoride in water, Ukrainian Nazis, the history of famine aid, and brainwashing. These other claims are outside the scope of this factcheck. Advertisement Local media reported earlier this month that two mythology-inspired sculptures had been unveiled by volunteers of Drogheda Tidy Towns. The sculpture is named 'Boann, Goddess of the Boyne', referencing an Irish pagan deity. (Islam is strictly monotheistic). While the sculpture does contain an image of a star inside a crescent, its proportions are different from those used in the Islamic symbols, such as that on the flags of Turkey or Pakistan. The artist, Breda Marron, explained on her website : 'The symbol of the sun, the moon and the star relates to our ancient ancestors who were guided by the alignment to the sun, moon and stars, when deciding about the positioning of the many important sites in the Boyne Valley, such as Newgrange and Knowth.' A similar sculpture that was also erected as part of the series has an almost identical base, though is topped with a spiral, symbolising a mythological sacred well where the River Boyne originated. The man in the social media video's comments about the sculpture being erected by a Nigerian are also puzzling given the artist is an Irish woman. Baseless claims that Muslims are trying to take over Ireland circulate frequently in Irish conspiracy theory groups. This year, The Journal has debunked claims that the most popular name for newborn boys in Galway is Muhammad; that Ireland is establishing a National Hijab Day ; that RTÉ is replacing the Angelus with a Muslim call to prayer ; and that the largest mosque in the world is being built in Ireland. Want to be your own fact-checker? Visit our brand-new FactCheck Knowledge Bank for guides and toolkits The Journal's FactCheck is a signatory to the International Fact-Checking Network's Code of Principles. You can read it here . For information on how FactCheck works, what the verdicts mean, and how you can take part, check out our Reader's Guide here . You can read about the team of editors and reporters who work on the factchecks here . Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... It is vital that we surface facts from noise. Articles like this one brings you clarity, transparency and balance so you can make well-informed decisions. We set up FactCheck in 2016 to proactively expose false or misleading information, but to continue to deliver on this mission we need your support. Over 5,000 readers like you support us. If you can, please consider setting up a monthly payment or making a once-off donation to keep news free to everyone. Learn More Support The Journal


RTÉ News
2 days ago
- RTÉ News
USAID analysis found no evidence of massive Hamas theft of Gaza aid
An internal US government analysis found no evidence of systematic theft by the Palestinian militant group Hamas of US-funded humanitarian supplies, challenging the main rationale that Israel and the US give for backing a new armed private aid operation. The analysis, which has not been previously reported, was conducted by a bureau within the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and completed in late June. It examined 156 incidents of theft or loss of US-funded supplies reported by US aid partner organisations between October 2023 and this May. It found "no reports alleging Hamas" benefited from US-funded supplies, according to a slide presentation of the findings seen by Reuters. A US State Department spokesperson disputed the findings, saying there is video evidence of Hamas looting aid, but provided no such videos. The spokesperson also accused traditional humanitarian groups of covering up "aid corruption". The findings were shared with the USAID's inspector general's office and State Department officials involved in Middle East policy, said two sources familiar with the matter, and come as dire food shortages deepen in the devastated enclave. Israel says it is committed to allowing in aid but must control it to prevent it from being stolen by Hamas, which it blames for the crisis. The UN World Food Programme says nearly a quarter of Gaza's 2.1 million Palestinians face famine-like conditions, thousands are suffering acute malnutrition, and the World Health Organization and doctors in the enclave report starvation deaths of children and others. The UN also estimates that Israeli forces have killed more than 1,000 people seeking food supplies, the majority near the militarised distribution sites of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), the new private aid group that uses a for-profit US logistics firm run by a former CIA officer and armed US military veterans. The study was conducted by the Bureau of Humanitarian Assistance (BHA) of USAID, which was the largest funder of assistance to Gaza before the Trump administration froze all US foreign aid in January, terminating thousands of programmes. It has also begun dismantling USAID, whose functions have been folded into the State Department. The analysis found that at least 44 of the 156 incidents where aid supplies were reported stolen or lost were "either directly or indirectly" due to Israeli military actions, according to the briefing slides. Israel's military did not respond to questions about those findings. The study noted a limitation: because Palestinians who receive aid cannot be vetted, it was possible that US-funded supplies went to administrative officials of Hamas, the Islamist rulers of Gaza. One source familiar with the study also cautioned that the absence of reports of widespread aid diversion by Hamas "does not mean that diversion has not occurred". The war in Gaza began after Hamas attacked Israel in October 2023, killing 1,200 people and capturing 251 hostages, according to Israeli tallies. Nearly 60,000 Palestinians have been killed since the Israeli assault began, according to Palestinian health officials. Israel says Hamas diverts humanitarian aid Israel, which controls access to Gaza, has said that Hamas steals food supplies from UN and other organisations to use to control the civilian population and boost its finances, including by jacking up the prices of the goods and reselling them to civilians. Asked about the USAID report, the Israeli military told Reuters that its allegations are based on intelligence reports that Hamas militants seized cargoes by "both covertly and overtly" embedding themselves on aid trucks. Those reports also show that Hamas has diverted up to 25% of aid supplies to its fighters or sold them to civilians, the Israeli military said, adding that GHF has ended the militants' control of aid by distributing it directly to civilians. Hamas denies the allegations. A Hamas security official said that Israel has killed more than 800 Hamas-affiliated police and security guards trying to protect aid vehicles and convoy routes. Their missions were coordinated with the UN. Reuters could not independently verify the claims by Hamas and Israel, which has not made public proof that the militants have systematically stolen aid. GHF also accuses Hamas of massive aid theft in defending its distribution model. The UN and other groups have rejected calls by GHF, Israel and the US to cooperate with the foundation, saying it violates international humanitarian principles of neutrality. In response to a request for comment, GHF referred Reuters to a 2 July Washington Post article that quoted an unidentified Gazan and anonymous Israeli officials as saying Hamas profited from the sales and taxing of pilfered humanitarian aid. Aid groups required to report losses The 156 reports of theft or losses of supplies reviewed by BHA were filed by UN agencies and other humanitarian groups working in Gaza as a condition of receiving US aid funds. The second source familiar with the matter said that after receiving reports of US-funded aid thefts or losses, USAID staff followed up with partner organisations to try to determine if there was Hamas involvement. Those organisations also would "redirect or pause" aid distributions if they learned that Hamas was in the vicinity, the source said. Aid organisations working in Gaza also are required to vet their personnel, sub-contractors and suppliers for ties to extremist groups before receiving US funds, a condition that the State Department waived in approving $30m for GHF last month. The slide presentation noted that USAID partners tended to over-report aid diversion and theft by groups sanctioned or designated by the US as foreign terrorist organisations - such as Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad - because they want to avoid losing US funding. Of the 156 incidents of loss or theft reported, 63 were attributed to unknown perpetrators, 35 to armed actors, 25 to unarmed people, 11 directly to Israeli military action, 11 to corrupt sub-contractors, five to aid group personnel "engaging in corrupt activities," and six to "others," a category that accounted for "commodities stolen in unknown circumstances," according to the slide presentation. The armed actors "included gangs and other miscellaneous individuals who may have had weapons," said a slide. Another slide said "a review of all 156 incidents found no affiliations with" US-designated foreign terrorist organisations, of which Hamas is one. "The majority of incidents could not be definitively attributed to a specific actor," said another slide. "Partners often largely discovered the commodities had been stolen in transit without identifying the perpetrator." It is possible there were classified intelligence reports on Hamas aid thefts, but BHA staff lost access to classified systems in the dismantlement of USAID, said a slide. However, a source familiar with US intelligence assessments said that they knew of no US intelligence reports detailing Hamas aid diversions and that Washington was relying on Israeli reports. The BHA analysis found that the Israeli military "directly or indirectly caused" a total of 44 incidents in which US-funded aid was lost or stolen. Those included the 11 attributed to direct Israeli military actions, such as airstrikes or orders to Palestinians to evacuate areas of the war-torn enclave. Losses indirectly attributed to Israeli military included cases where they compelled aid groups to use delivery routes with high risks of theft or looting, ignoring requests for alternative routes, the analysis said.