For their beliefs the United Arab Emirates paid at least 5.7 million euros to a Swiss intelligence company to run smear campaigns against Muslims across Europe. The leaked documents uncovered by the Abu Dhabi Secrets Inquiry revealed files on 1,000+ individuals and 400+ organizations in 18 European countries, many branded as Muslim Brotherhood linked. This article says there is a much wider UAE online network of 330,000 accounts pushing anti-Muslim content. And here is the geopolitical angle: the UAE's partnership with Israel, their shared hostility to political Islam and the overlap between their narratives and the extreme right in Europe. Israel benefits when Muslim political activism is framed as extremism. The UAE benefits when Muslim civil society is vilified. The far right gets more ammunition to demonize Muslims. Millions invested in smearing Muslims. Hundreds of thousands of accounts amplify the narrative. and a political ecosystem where Israel's interests align with the campaign. The United Arab Emirates is itself a predominantly Sunni Muslim country.

For their beliefs the United Arab Emirates paid at least 5.7 million euros to a Swiss intelligence company to run smear campaigns against Muslims across Europe. The leaked documents uncovered by the Abu Dhabi Secrets Inquiry revealed files on 1,000+ individuals and 400+ organizations in 18 European countries, many branded as Muslim Brotherhood linked. This article says there is a much wider UAE online network of 330,000 accounts pushing anti-Muslim content. And here is the geopolitical angle: the UAE's partnership with Israel, their shared hostility to political Islam and the overlap between their narratives and the extreme right in Europe. Israel benefits when Muslim political activism is framed as extremism. The UAE benefits when Muslim civil society is vilified. The far right gets more ammunition to demonize Muslims. Millions invested in smearing Muslims. Hundreds of thousands of accounts amplify the narrative. and a political ecosystem where Israel's interests align with the campaign. The United Arab Emirates is itself a predominantly Sunni Muslim country.