Overview

Tarik Chadlioui, a.k.a. Tarik Ibn Ali, is a Moroccan-born Islamist preacher who reportedly played a role in radicalizing Bataclan suicide bomber Omar Mostefai through sermons at a Paris mosque. Chadlioui is further accused of fundraising for Syrian extremists and of being the spiritual leader of the now-defunct Islamist group Sharia4Belgium, which has ties to the defunct group Sharia4UK, once led by jailed propagandist Anjem Choudary.Jay Akbar and Neil Doyle, “Preacher of terror: Revealed, the hate filled Belgian Muslim cleric who 'radicalised' Bataclan suicide bomber Omar Mostefai,” Daily Mail (London), November 17, 2015, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3320770/Preacher-terror-Revealed-hate-filled-Belgian-Muslim-cleric-radicalised-Bataclan-suicide-bomber-Omar-Mostefai.html. Though reportedly based in the United Kingdom since 2015, Spanish authorities accuse Chadlioui of being the spiritual leader of a jihadist group in Spain. Spain accuses Chadlioui of using his social media channels to recruit for ISIS. On June 28, 2017, British authorities arrested Chadlioui in Birmingham as part of a continent-wide operation against ISIS supporters.Ben Farmer and James Badcock, “Birmingham counter-terror arrest: Alleged ‘spiritual leader’ of Majorca-based cell is held,” Telegraph (London), June 28, 2017, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/06/28/birmingham-counter-terror-arrest-alleged-spiritual-leader-majorca/. Based on these offenses in Majorca in 2014 and 2015, the Westminster Magistrates’ Court ruled on October 3, 2017 that Chadlioui be extradited to Spain.“Central Magistrates Court Number 1 of the Spanish Criminal Court V. Tark Chadlioui,” Westminster Magistrates’ Court, October 3, 2017, https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/chadlioui-v-spain-20171003.pdf. It is reported that on February 2018, Chadlioui was taken into custody in SpainFelipe Armendáriz, “Imam Tarik, terrorist or de-radicalizer?,” Diario de Mallorca, January 12, 2019, https://www.diariodemallorca.es/mallorca/2019/01/13/iman-tarik--terrorista-o/1382453.html. and as of January 09, 2019 he is on provisional release after paying 60,000 euros in bail.“En libertad bajo fianza de 60.000 euros un yihadista relacionado con una ‘matanza’ planeada en Inca,” Europa Press, January 08, 2019, https://www.europapress.es/nacional/noticia-libertad-fianza-60000-euros-yihadista-relacionado-matanza-planeada-inca-mallorca-20190108213442.html.

Chadlioui maintains an active presence on social media. He has more than 29,000 followers on Facebook.Tarik Chadlioui, Facebook page, accessed June 19, 2017, https://www.facebook.com/tarik.ibnali. Since Chadlioui joined YouTube in 2007, he has amassed more than 16,000 subscribers and his videos have received more than 13 million views.Tarik Ibn Ali, YouTube page, accessed June 19, 2017, https://www.youtube.com/user/TarikIbnAli. YouTube videos of Chadlioui show him extolling jihad as a path to forgiveness for other sins.Jay Akbar and Neil Doyle, “Preacher of terror: Revealed, the hate filled Belgian Muslim cleric who 'radicalised' Bataclan suicide bomber Omar Mostefai,” Daily Mail (London), November 17, 2015, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3320770/Preacher-terror-Revealed-hate-filled-Belgian-Muslim-cleric-radicalised-Bataclan-suicide-bomber-Omar-Mostefai.html;
Abd Mus, “Ô toi qui délaisse ou retarde la prière ! [2/8],” YouTube video, uploaded April 11, 2010, 9:22, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7wlhqnVtPA.

Tarik Chadlioui’s videos have received more than 13 million views on YouTube. (Source: YouTube)

Chadlioui was previously based in Belgium, but reportedly moved to Egypt in 2010 after the Belgian government outlawed Islamic face veils in public.Jay Akbar and Neil Doyle, “Preacher of terror: Revealed, the hate filled Belgian Muslim cleric who 'radicalised' Bataclan suicide bomber Omar Mostefai,” Daily Mail (London), November 17, 2015, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3320770/Preacher-terror-Revealed-hate-filled-Belgian-Muslim-cleric-radicalised-Bataclan-suicide-bomber-Omar-Mostefai.html; “Belgian ban on full veils comes into force,” BBC News, July 23, 2011, http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-14261921. In 2015, he reportedly moved to the United Kingdom.Alexander Robertson, “Terror suspect arrested in Birmingham and facing extradition to Spain is imam father-of-eight who preached to Bataclan bomber before Paris attacks,” Daily Mail (London), updated June 29, 2017, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4646058/Police-arrest-ISIS-supporter-Birmingham.html.< Chadlioui purportedly traveled regularly to Europe to lecture at mosques and Islamic events. He spoke several times at the Luce mosque in the Paris suburb of Courcouronnes. Bataclan suicide bomber Ismaël Omar Mostefai reportedly attended the mosque.Jay Akbar and Neil Doyle, “Preacher of terror: Revealed, the hate filled Belgian Muslim cleric who 'radicalised' Bataclan suicide bomber Omar Mostefai,” Daily Mail (London), November 17, 2015, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3320770/Preacher-terror-Revealed-hate-filled-Belgian-Muslim-cleric-radicalised-Bataclan-suicide-bomber-Omar-Mostefai.html. Mostefai was one of three gunmen who attacked Paris’s Bataclan theater in a series of coordinated attacks on November 13, 2015, that killed 130 people and wounded more than 300 others.Michael Safi, “Paris attacks: severed finger found at Bataclan theatre identifies attacker,” Guardian (London), November 15, 2015, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/15/paris-attacks-severed-finger-found-at-bataclan-theatre-identifies-attacker;
Paul Cruickshank, “The inside story of the Paris and Brussels attacks,” CNN, March 30, 2016, http://www.cnn.com/2016/03/30/europe/inside-paris-brussels-terror-attacks/index.html.

Chadlioui was previously based in Belgium, but reportedly moved to Egypt in 2010 after the Belgian government outlawed Islamic face veils in public.Jay Akbar and Neil Doyle, “Preacher of terror: Revealed, the hate filled Belgian Muslim cleric who 'radicalised' Bataclan suicide bomber Omar Mostefai,” Daily Mail (London), November 17, 2015, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3320770/Preacher-terror-Revealed-hate-filled-Belgian-Muslim-cleric-radicalised-Bataclan-suicide-bomber-Omar-Mostefai.html;
“Belgian ban on full veils comes into force,” BBC News, July 23, 2011, http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-14261921. Chadlioui now reportedly travels regularly to Europe to lecture at mosques and Islamic events. Chadlioui spoke several times at the Luce mosque in the Paris suburb of Courcouronnes. Bataclan suicide bomber Ismaël Omar Mostefai reportedly attended the mosque.Jay Akbar and Neil Doyle, “Preacher of terror: Revealed, the hate filled Belgian Muslim cleric who 'radicalised' Bataclan suicide bomber Omar Mostefai,” Daily Mail (London), November 17, 2015, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3320770/Preacher-terror-Revealed-hate-filled-Belgian-Muslim-cleric-radicalised-Bataclan-suicide-bomber-Omar-Mostefai.html. Mostefai was one of three gunmen who attacked Paris’s Bataclan theater in a series of coordinated attacks on November 13, 2015, that killed 130 people and wounded more than 300 others.Michael Safi, “Paris attacks: severed finger found at Bataclan theatre identifies attacker,” Guardian (London), November 15, 2015, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/15/paris-attacks-severed-finger-found-at-bataclan-theatre-identifies-attacker;
Paul Cruickshank, “The inside story of the Paris and Brussels attacks,” CNN, March 30, 2016, http://www.cnn.com/2016/03/30/europe/inside-paris-brussels-terror-attacks/index.html.

In September 2014, Dutch lawmakers called for Chadlioui to be banned from entering the country ahead of a scheduled talk in the Dutch city of Gouda,“Radical Imam Should be Banned From Gouda: Politicians,” NL Times, September 18, 2014, http://nltimes.nl/2014/09/18/radical-imam-banned-gouda-politicians/. though Chadlioui’s talk reportedly went on as scheduled. The Dutch government nonetheless reportedly revoked Chadlioui’s visa ahead of a March 2015 fundraiser in Rijswijk that Dutch media labeled a “jihad gala.”Jay Akbar and Neil Doyle, “Preacher of terror: Revealed, the hate filled Belgian Muslim cleric who 'radicalised' Bataclan suicide bomber Omar Mostefai,” Daily Mail (London), November 17, 2015, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3320770/Preacher-terror-Revealed-hate-filled-Belgian-Muslim-cleric-radicalised-Bataclan-suicide-bomber-Omar-Mostefai.html;
“MPs, officials want answers on Rijswijk ‘jihad gala,’” NL Times, February 16, 2015, http://www.dutchnews.nl/news/archives/2015/02/mps-officials-want-answers-on-rijswijk-jihad-gala/.

Chadlioui is linked to at least three European Islamist groups. He was reportedly the spiritual leader of Sharia4Belgium, a now-defunct Belgium-based group whose members traveled to Syria en masse in 2014.Matthew Dalton and Margaret Coker, “How Belgium Became a Jihadist-Recruiting Hub,” Wall Street Journal, September 28, 2014, http://www.wsj.com/articles/how-belgium-became-a-jihadist-recruiting-hub-1411958283. Sharia4Belgium’s leader, Foud Belkacem, was sentenced to 12 years in prison in February 2015.Andrew Higgins, “Head of Belgian Group Said to Recruit Fighters for Syria Gets 12-Year Term,” New York Times, February 11, 2015, https://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/12/world/europe/fouad-belkacem-sharia4belgium-verdict-trial-belgium.html?_r=0. Germany banned the Islamist group Millatu Ibrahim in 2012 for promoting violence in its “fight against existing constitutional order,” according to the government.“Salafist Organization Banned in Germany,” Spiegel Online, June 14, 2012, http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/germany-bans-salafist-organization-and-stages-police-raids-a-838832.html. Nonetheless, Chadlioui reportedly raised €91,000 for the group during a 2013 speech at a German mosque.Jay Akbar and Neil Doyle, “Preacher of terror: Revealed, the hate filled Belgian Muslim cleric who 'radicalised' Bataclan suicide bomber Omar Mostefai,” Daily Mail (London), November 17, 2015, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3320770/Preacher-terror-Revealed-hate-filled-Belgian-Muslim-cleric-radicalised-Bataclan-suicide-bomber-Omar-Mostefai.html. The YouTube page of German Islamist group DawaFFM hosts several videos of Chadlioui addressing the group.DawaFFMTeam, YouTube page, accessed June 19, 2017, https://www.youtube.com/user/DAWAFFMTEAM/videos. The German government banned the group in March 2013, citing its incitement of violent Islamist radicals.Associated Press, “Germany: Islamist Group Banned,” New York Times, June 15, 2012, http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/15/world/europe/germany-islamist-group-millatu-ibrahim-banned.html;
Associated Press, “Germany bans two ultraconservative Islamic groups,” Yahoo News, March 13, 2013, https://www.yahoo.com/news/germany-bans-2-ultraconservative-islamic-groups-131207241.html?ref=gs.

As part of a Europe-wide counter-ISIS operation, British authorities arrested Chadlioui in Birmingham on June 28, 2017, for allegedly recruiting for the terror group through his social media videos.Alexander Robertson, “Terror suspect arrested in Birmingham and facing extradition to Spain is imam father-of-eight who preached to Bataclan bomber before Paris attacks,” Daily Mail (London), updated June 29, 2017, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4646058/Police-arrest-ISIS-supporter-Birmingham.html. At the same time, Spanish police said they arrested four of Chadlioui’s followers in Majorka, Spain, while another was arrested in Germany. Spanish authorities seek to extradite Chadlioui. Spanish police suspect Chadlioui of “exercising functions ranging from recruiting, indoctrination and radicalization” on behalf of ISIS and “becoming from that point on their spiritual leader.”Ben Farmer and James Badcock, “Birmingham counter-terror arrest: Alleged ‘spiritual leader’ of Majorca-based cell is held,” Telegraph (London), June 28, 2017, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/06/28/birmingham-counter-terror-arrest-alleged-spiritual-leader-majorca/. Chadlioui faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.Ben Farmer and James Badcock, “Birmingham counter-terror arrest: Alleged ‘spiritual leader’ of Majorca-based cell is held,” Telegraph (London), June 28, 2017, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/06/28/birmingham-counter-terror-arrest-alleged-spiritual-leader-majorca/.