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4 - British Muslims and Foreign Policy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 August 2025

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Summary

British Muslims constitute a diverse group but one organization clearly stands out: the Muslim Council of Britain, mainly because of the role conferred upon the Council by the governmental sphere. Ethnic and religious mobilizations have full legitimacy in the British political landscape and Muslims have emerged as a mobilized group.

Once again, a range of primary and secondary sources serve the analysis. Polls, surveys and their reports in the media1 constitute an interesting source of data to try to understand British Muslims as a group of individuals. This data can give us an idea of Muslims’ positions but is insufficient to explore the narratives articulated on issues of foreign policy. As a consequence, the biggest share of this chapter is dedicated to a case study on the MCB's expression and mobilization on international issues. Institutional open-source data is rich and allows for a detailed exploration of archives, similarly to the UOIF's case. One press release of the MCB even explicitly notes that its stance on international issues can be established from its publications and its website2. Content analysis of the documents allows for an in-depth qualitative appreciation of the issues raised, the type of rhetoric and any potential report on or call for mobilization.

The first section gives elements of context, based on polls and surveys, about Muslim communities’ preferences. The second section explores the communication of the MCB and the forms of mobilization adopted while dissecting the issues of interest.

I. Diasporic and Transnational Dimensions of British Muslims’ Foreign Policy Interests

Foreign Policy: A Major Concern of British Muslims

The specificity of British Muslims in comparison with their European counterparts regarding general relations with Westerners and their closeness of views with Muslims in Muslim countries3 has been frequently reported in the press (The Times, June 24, 2006). If Muslim communities’ domestic concerns are similar to other religious groups’, this is not the case for foreign policy4. It is in Great Britain that foreign policy is the most important for Muslim voters5. British Muslims’ voting habits seem to be more determined by foreign issues (Palestine, Iraq and Kashmir being the examples quoted in the article) than by other social and economic issues, a conclusion corroborated by the findings of the Cantle report (The Times, April 1, 2003).

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Type
Chapter
Information
European Muslims and their Foreign Policy Interests
Identities and Loyalties
, pp. 57 - 78
Publisher: Gerlach Books
Print publication year: 2018

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