Sharia4Belgium is a Belgian radical Salafist organisation. The spokesman is Fouad Belkacem alias Abu Imran.
Sharia4Belgium denounces democracy and calls to reform Belgium into an Islamist state.
Spokesman Fouad Belkacem repeatedly spoke out controversially. He preaches the death penalty for LGBT people and says he has been praying for Osama bin Laden. In 2010 they disrupted a lecture of Benno Barnard of the University of Antwerp.[1] In the beginning of April 2010, Belgian interior minister Annemie Turtelboom said she ordered following of the website of the organisation,[2] to which the provider of the website responded by taking it offline. In the mean time it is back online. In 2011 the organisation mentioned the death of Vlaams Belang-politician Marie-Rose Morel a punishment of Allah.[3] Also Bart De Wever, Filip Dewinter and Geert Wilders are told they can expect consequenses if they do not show remorse. Defence minister Pieter De Crem was threatened with his life on the internet because of the Belgian participation in Operation Odyssey Dawn in Libya.[4]
When Belkacem was invited to the 2012 Global Shariah Conference, organized by the radical Islamic movement Sharia4Holland, the Party for Freedom asked ministers Ivo Opstelten and Gerd Leers to treat Belkacem as persona non grata.[5]
Although Sharia4Belgium was called to the correctional court for incitement to hate,[6] neither the organisation nor its members were sentenced. Frontman Belkacem has a criminal record for burglary and resist to arrest and was sentenced in 2002, 2004 and 2007.[7] In 2012, he was again sentenced in Antwerp to two years imprisonment for incitement of hatred towards non-Muslims.[5] Morocco is seeking his extradition in connection to drug trade.[8]
Belkacem was arrested on the morning of June 7, 2012.[9][10]
Belkacem was sentenced in Morocco for possession of illegal drugs.[11][12]
In 2012, Abu Imran was sentenced to two years' imprisonment for incitement to hatred and violence towards non-Muslims.[13]
On October 7, 2012, Sharia4Belgium announced on their website that their organisation was being dissolved.
