Saudi funding for radical European preachers under scrutiny

The terrorist attacks on Brussels on 22 March have led to renewed scrutiny of Saudi funding for radical Salafist preachers at the city’s main mosque. The Centre Islamique et Culturel de Belgique, which includes the Great Mosque, is situated in Parc du Cinquantenaire on the edge of the European Quarter of Brussels, and has been funded by Riyadh since a 1967 visit by the late King Faisal Bin Abdelaziz. The centre, which is a short walk from Maelbeek metro station – site of one of the attacks – issued a statement on 22 March condemning the attacks, which left at least 32 dead and scores injured.