PHILADELPHIA: An MEF investigation published at Focus on Western Islamism (FWI) has uncovered a network of Western Islamists working to provide ideological and material support to the terrorist-supporting Taliban rulers of Afghanistan.

In footage reviewed by FWI, the network's officials and supporters, including members of registered public charities in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Germany, proclaim Afghanistan an "opportunity for the entire Muslim Ummah to see full-fledged complete Sharia being implemented" and a base for re-establishing a global caliphate.

The Western network, including members of the Deobandi movement in South Asia and international Islamist organization Hizb ut-Tahrir (Party of Islamic Liberation), has met repeatedly with Taliban officials and was praised publicly by the Taliban prime minister's office in Kabul. At least one of the network's projects in Afghanistan was paid for by the Taliban's Ministry of Public Works.

Predictably, given Islamists' long and effective practice of using innocuous-sounding charities for malign ends, the two key organizations supporting the Deobandi jihadist Taliban are Islamic Oasis (Chicago) and Qamar Charity Foundation (German-British).

Among its findings:

Direct engagement and endorsement: Taliban leadership, including the prime minister's office, praised and funded these charities for their infrastructure projects and educational initiatives promoting the Taliban's ideology.

Supporting wider Islamist ambitions: The Western organizations promote strict Sharia law in Afghanistan by hosting discussions with Islamist leaders and lending strategic support for the Taliban's governance.

Recruitment and mobilization efforts: Luring Muslims from the West to Afghanistan, with Islamic Oasis and Qamar assisting visa processing and recruiting skilled professionals for development projects.

Financial operations and funding: The network openly discusses establishing cryptocurrencies and other new financial instruments as a means to "bypass" U.S. financial oversight.

"How can an international network of terrorist-supporters thrive in Western countries – time after time – without law enforcement's knowledge, much less action?" said MEF Islamist Watch director and report author Sam Westrop. "There are designated terrorists involved in the Taliban government, and Afghanistan is subject to sanctions. The Justice Department and other federal offices must finally take these threats seriously," he added.

"Why are Western charitable systems allowed to funnel money to a violent theocracy that seeks to reestablish the caliphate?" asked MEF director Gregg Roman. "It boggles the imagination."

The Middle East Forum, a non-profit organization, promotes American interests in the Middle East and protects Western civilization from Islamism. It does so through a combination of original ideas, focused activism, and funding allies. For more information, visit www.meforum.org.