Yesterday, Tuesday, May 13, 2025, the CCIE was targeted by searches and custody measures involving, notably, its founding members. We strongly denounce these actions, which amount to a clear attempt at intimidation. It needs to be reminded that the CCIE is a Brussels-based European association, it is not the former CCIF.
The timing of these searches and detentions is far from coincidental. These operations come while shock over the murder of Aboubakar Cissé is still fresh in everybody’s mind. Just two days after protest marches were held across France against Islamophobic hatred—in which thousands of people expressed their concern peacefully and with dignity—the message being sent is chilling. At a time when Europe is facing a worrying rise in Islamophobic violence, the French authorities have chosen not to target hate speech itself, but rather those who, for years, have been working to document this hatred and resist it through peaceful, democratic means.
These searches are not based on any serious offense or imminent threat—they are clearly politically motivated. Their aim is to delegitimize grassroots efforts and support for victims, and to create a climate of fear around initiatives that call out anti-Muslim racism. This is an attempt to apply pressure, to discredit, to portray anti-racist activism as a threat. The police apparatus is being used to obstruct forms of expression that are nonetheless protected by the fundamental principles of law.
Since its founding, our collective has documented the discrimination and violence experienced by Muslims in Europe. We support victims, produce analyses, and alert institutions. This work—recognized and shared in numerous forums—is disturbing to some precisely because it sheds light on what others seek to render invisible: the structural entrenchment of Islamophobia in public policies and dominant media discourse, as well as the devastating consequences this can have for Muslims in Europe.
It is urgent that we defend the freedoms of organizations and the right of all to participate in public debate without fear of stigma or repression. What is being targeted today is the very legitimacy of critical voices. We therefore call for solidarity and a refusal to normalize these practices.
