In 2019, the European Research Council approved and funded the European Qur'an Project, granting it almost 10 million euros.
(LifeSiteNews) — The European Union is publicly funding a project that promotes an Islamocentric reinterpretation of European history.
French Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) Céline Imart (Les Républicains) and Fabrice Leggeri (Rassemblement National) have both recently sent a letter of protest to the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, raising critical questions about the use of European public funds.
Specifically, Leggeri asked about the scientific and ethical criteria that led to the huge funding of the European Qur'an project, highlighting its disturbing connections with the ideology of the Muslim Brotherhood. A "considerable amount" has been invested "for this type of program," Fabrice Leggeri told Le Figaro. "In general, most grants reach a much lower amount."
Several years ago, in 2007, the European Commission established the European Research Council (ERC) to support the continent's best scientific projects. In 2019, the ERC approved and funded the European Qur'an Project (EuQu), granting it almost 10 million euros (approximately $11,423,000 US). This makes it the most generously funded EU project.
The research, spanning seven years (2019–2026), aims to study “how the Qur'an was translated, adapted, and used in Europe between 1150 and 1850.” Professor John Tolan, a professor in Nantes, is one of the principal promoters of the project. He is supported by other researchers from European universities like Copenhagen and Naples.
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According to an investigation conducted by the French newspaper Journal du Dimanche, several academics involved in the project are reportedly close to the Muslim Brotherhood. In 2019, Tolan gave a lecture on the reception of Muhammad in Europe at the European Institute of Human Sciences in Paris. He has also collaborated with Musulmans de France, which is also linked to the Brotherhood, and has received recognition from pro-Turkish Islamic associations. Another researcher in the group, Naima Afif, authored a biography of the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood.
Fabrice Leggeri is the former director of Frontex and now a Member of the European Parliament for the Rassemblement National. This is not the first time he has raised questions to clarify potential European funding of Islamist associations.
Leggeri has accused the EU of using funds intended for scientific excellence to subsidize the ideological rewriting of history, promoting the narrative of a Europe developed alongside or even thanks to Islam. All of this occurs while many governments, such as the French government for decades now, or even the Polish government, wage war against the Catholic identity of their countries.
Leggeri is expected to receive responses from President Von der Leyen in approximately six weeks.
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