We are not doing anything with Islamic Relief!
The global Muslim charity Islamic Relief can’t catch a break. In late March, Islamic Relief USA (IRUSA) filed a lawsuit against its organizational parent, Islamic Relief Worldwide, headquartered in the U.K. In its lawsuit, IRUSA accused IRW of unlawful fundraising, obstructing audits, and other bad acts that hindered the charity’s ability to operate in the United States free of scrutiny from by officials who view the Islamic Relief franchise as a conduit of funds for anti-Western Islamists. A few weeks later, IRW, which has long denied having any ties to Islamist organizations, called for the lawsuit to be dismissed, describing IRUSA’s lawsuit as nothing more than a “publicity stunt” intended to mollify U.S. lawmakers.
Trouble in Germany
Now, controversy involving the Islamic Relief franchise has erupted in Germany where an umbrella organization of humanitarian organizations announced the expulsion of IR’s local affiliate from its ranks earlier this month. In a June 2, 2026, vote, the governing body of Aktion Deutschland Hilft (ADH), approved a resolution expelling Islamic Relief Deutschland (IRD) from its body.
“The decision is based on the alliance’s shared standards and guidelines,” ADH announced. “The organization’s membership had been suspended since 2020, pending the initiation of the now-completed review process.” ADH said the decision to oust IRD from its ranks was “not related to any evaluation of [its] work and is based solely on the criteria for membership established in the alliance’s statutes.” ADH was equally cryptic in its response to Focus on Western Islamism’s request for more detail in an email statement that read
The general meeting reached its decision through a structured review process in accordance with the statutes. The decision was based on a comprehensive internal assessment conducted in accordance with the criteria set forth in the bylaws, code of values, and guidelines—always with a view to ensuring that the association can reliably fulfill its statutory purpose and humanitarian mission on a long-term basis.
IRD expressed regret over the decision, acknowledging the efforts made in recent years with ADH partners to reach a constructive solution to problems it did not detail. The organization, which did not respond to an email inquiry from Focus on Western Islamism (FWI), emphasized on its website that ADH explicitly stated the expulsion was unrelated to the quality or effectiveness of its humanitarian work, highlighted its strengthened governance structures, clean audits showing no financial irregularities, and affirmed that it would continue its operations unchanged in Germany and worldwide as it marks its 30th anniversary. For its part, IRW fully endorsed its German affiliate’s statement, and affirmed that IR franchise remains committed to continuing its humanitarian work “without interruption.”
IRD provides funding to IRW, with financial reports indicating that the parent organization received more than €10 million from IRD in 2013 and 2014 and in 2024, €20 million. In addition to the financial relationship between the two organizations, there seems to be some overlap in terms of leadership. In particular, Hossam Said serves as Chairman (Vorsitzender) of the Board of Islamic Relief Deutschland and as member of the Board of Trustees of Islamic Relief Worldwide.
Critical Audit Released Six Years Later
ADH’s cryptic announcement about IRD’s ouster from its ranks came soon after the German government released a 2019 audit that condemned the country’s Foreign Affairs Ministry for giving €8.5 million in grants given to IRD between 2013 and 2016 for health projects in Syria.
According to the audit, which was released in February (and can be seen here and here) Germany’s Federal Court of Auditors concluded in December 2019 that IRD should never have received funding from the Federal Foreign Affairs Ministry in the first place. Auditors also concluded that officials in the Foreign Affairs Ministry failed to exercise proper oversight over the funds given.
Internal records showed that as early as 2009, senior officials at the Foreign Affairs Ministry had rejected any cooperation with Islamic Relief, stating there should be “no funding.” One staffer in Germany’s Foreign Affairs Ministry declared, “We are not doing anything with Islamic Relief!” It is clear: no grants, no inclusion in the Coordinating Committee.” (The Foreign Affairs Ministry’s Coordinating Committee for Humanitarian Assistance—of which IRD is still a part—oversees German emergency relief operations overseas.)
The auditors report that the Foreign Affairs Ministry could not explain what prompted the agency to do business with IRD and to make matters worse, a file detailing the office’s interactions with the charity between January 1994 and May 2006 was destroyed in August 2013—the year the Foreign Affairs Ministry started funding the charity. The report states that the ministry was unable to explain why it concluded the IRD had a “good reputation as a humanitarian organization” four years after it had “flatly refused” to work with the charity.
Despite early objections, the ministry later approved the Syria projects, justifying its decision by pointing to IRD’s claimed unique access to hard-to-reach areas. The Foreign Affairs Ministry also asserted that the Interior Ministry had approved the funding, the audit states. Officials at the Interior Ministry, however, later told auditors they had only discussed the matter and had not given formal approval. The auditors also reported that for projects in Syria, IRD had not spent a required minimum of its own funds as required under German law to qualify for public funding.
In two projects, IRD forwarded grant money to partner organizations without the required authorization in the official grant documents. When the Foreign Affairs Ministry finally reviewed the completed projects years later, it identified multiple violations and demanded repayment of roughly €155,000 plus interest. The audit indicates that this demand for repayment was atypical, with the Foreign Affairs Ministry usually letting IRD off with warnings for its regulatory failures.
One of the most striking findings involved large cash transfers. A project partner of IRD planned to move funds from the Foreign Affairs Ministry “in a suitcase” from Germany to Turkey because of alleged banking difficulties. As it turns out, IRD files on the development projects in question provided no proof that there were any difficulties at any time with bank transfers from Germany to Turkey.”
The Foreign Affairs Ministry accepted a very general explanation for the transfers and did not sufficiently investigate the risks, despite rules requiring written declarations for cash transfers of over €10,000 to prevent money laundering and terrorism financing, auditors reported.
The Court of Auditors also sharply criticized the Foreign Affairs Ministry for weak documentation, bypassing its own internal procedures, and relying on the absence of proven financial misconduct instead of addressing the fundamental question of whether IRD was an appropriate partner. It recommended ending all funding to the organization. The Foreign Affairs Ministry defended its actions by citing the urgent humanitarian crisis in Syria, but auditors stood by their findings. By September 2019, the Foreign Affairs Ministry confirmed in writing that it had no plans to fund IRD in the future. In sum, The Court of Auditors described the Foreign Affairs Ministry’s handling of the IRD grants as “by no means satisfactory” and said the ministry had effectively been “funding blindly.”
The audit also expressed concern that IRD transferred significant funds to its parent organization, Islamic Relief Worldwide, despite its alleged ties to Islamist organization in the Middle East—which IRW has repeatedly and vociferously denied.
The Jerusalem Post reported in late May that the unredacted sections of the audit “contain no direct evidence that Foreign Affairs Ministry funds were transferred to the Muslim Brotherhood or Hamas or used to finance terrorist attacks.” An IFW official suggested, however, that when suitcases of money are being sent from Germany to Turkey, there is simply no way to know where the money went.
On this score, the German news outlet NZZ was particularly harsh in its assessment, declaring in late May that, “where the suitcases ultimately ended up is not recorded anywhere. If the money did reach Syria, it stands to reason that Islamists might also have profited from it.”
Officials Tried to Keep Audit Secret
The audit became public only after five years of legal challenges by the Institute for Secular Law (IFW), a nonprofit organization that advocates for the protection of civil society in Germany. German officials opposed the release of the audit for fear that its publication “could lead to public controversy and political escalation.” For its part, IFW argued that German taxpayers had the right to know how their money was being spent. In September 2025, the Federal Administrative Court approved the release of the documents with redactions that protect the operations of Germany’s intelligence-gathering community.
IRW Responds to Controversy
In response to a request for comment, Islamic Relief Worldwide told FWI that, “Islamic Relief Worldwide has been saving lives and tackling poverty since 1984, reaching over 145 million people across more than 40 countries. As a UK-registered charity, our accounts and operations have undergone rigorous independent audits that have consistently confirmed robust systems are in place to guard against any abuse or diversion of funds. We are one of the few UK-based charities to hold full Core Humanitarian Standard (CHS) certification, now for nine consecutive years.”
The organization expressed pride in its past partnership with the German government, noting that the funding “provided lifesaving healthcare and aid to support nearly one million Syrians affected by years of conflict.”
IRW categorically rejected allegations of improper ties, stating: “We categorically reject any suggestion that Islamic Relief Worldwide has links to, or provides support for, any political or proscribed groups.” The statement concluded by noting the dangers faced by its staff: “Our staff work in some of the world’s most dangerous environments; some have themselves been victims of terrorism.”
Islamic Relief USA on Sidelines, ‘Has Nothing to Hide’
In response to a query from FWI, Islamic Relief USA emphasized its complete separation from Islamic Relief Worldwide and described itself as “a transparent, mainstream American purely humanitarian organization [that] does not subscribe to any ideology, whether Islamist or otherwise.”
IRUSA stated it had “no interaction with or awareness of any German funding issues” related to the audit of IRD. The organization noted it is committed to transparency and that reviewing such materials is “a critical purpose of the lawsuit” it filed against IRW.
When asked whether it would use the German audit as additional evidence in its lawsuit, IRUSA replied that this “is a question for our legal team to determine when they have reviewed the German audit material.”
On the issue of IRW’s desire to move the lawsuit to confidential arbitration in the U.K. (as reported in a previous FWI article), IRUSA declared it ”has nothing to hide and welcomes the public airing of these facts. As a U.S.-based nonprofit, we are committed to transparency and believe there is a compelling public interest in having these matters examined openly and thoroughly in a U.S. court.”
In any event, the Islamic Relief brand is taking a beating in North America and Europe.
