Muslim Brotherhood in Canada influence has drawn renewed scrutiny after a research report concluded that networks aligned with the movement have become embedded across Canadian civic life, raising concerns about potential risks to Western democracies.
The Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy reported what it described as links between Muslim Brotherhood-aligned organizations and Canadian democratic institutions, civil society groups, electoral politics and universities. The analysis compared these ties to patterns seen in other Western countries that some analysts label the red-green alliance.
According to the institute’s executive director, the challenge is broader than isolated actors. He said the report charts how interconnected ideological networks can gain legitimacy, institutional access, public funding and political influence while avoiding scrutiny.
Muslim Brotherhood in Canada ties disputed
The roughly 200-page study, titled “Assault on Democratic Values and Principles: How Islamist Entryism Weakens Civil Society and Higher Education in Canada,” asserted there are numerous apparent links between the Muslim Association of Canada, based in Mississauga, and the Muslim Brotherhood, the movement founded in Egypt in 1928 by Hasan al-Banna.
The report alleged that leaders of the Muslim Association of Canada, a large charitable organization that runs mosques, community centers, schools and educational programs, have been directly or indirectly associated with the Muslim Brotherhood, and that those relationships could influence the charity’s activities.
The Muslim Association of Canada rejected the study, calling it a biased and unsubstantiated document that recycles Islamophobic tropes. The organization said a Canada Revenue Agency audit had concluded without finding Brotherhood links in its final determination, and it described itself as an independent Canadian group.
Canadian tax authorities had examined the association in 2023, indicating possible ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. The association denied the claims, citing systemic bias and Islamophobia. The Canada Revenue Agency did not revoke the group’s charitable status.
Alleged electoral influence and broader implications
The report also contended that Canadian groups affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood helped influence the country’s election system. It pointed to a coordinated “Vote Palestine” campaign in the 2025 cycle that it said secured endorsements from 344 candidates across four political parties.
The institute’s executive director argued that Islamist movements and elements of the radical left can find common cause in weakening Western influence, citing the Iranian Revolution as a historical parallel and warning that similar dynamics are appearing in Europe and now Canada. A Muslim scholar who fled Egypt after criticizing Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023 attacks voiced similar concerns about a convergence between radical Islamism and the radical left, warning of threats to American and Western politics.
U.S. designations and policy recommendations
U.S. officials have repeatedly criticized the Muslim Brotherhood. In January, the Treasury Department designated Egyptian and Jordanian branches of the Muslim Brotherhood as Specially Designated Global Terrorists. In July, the department sanctioned a senior Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood figure it alleged helped finance Hamas’s military wing. The Treasury Secretary said the administration would pursue terrorists and their financiers, including those operating under the guise of charities or businesses.
The report urged the Canadian government to adopt policy changes aimed at reducing the influence of groups it says are aligned with the Muslim Brotherhood in electoral processes and in traditional institutions. The Embassy of Canada to the United States in Washington did not respond to a request for comment.
Some observers have warned about the broader political ramifications of these developments, echoing concerns raised in debates over U.S. campaign dynamics such as those involving Karoline Leavitt and partisan influence groups.