US think tank spied on Muslims for 20 years

A right-wing think tank in the United States has been exposed for maintaining an extensive database on thousands of Muslim Americans and Muslim organizations over roughly two decades, according to a report published by Huffington Post. The Middle East Forum (MEF), founded in 1994, allegedly gathered more than 4 million records containing identity details, social media accounts and tax information, along with data on mosques, schools, businesses and other institutions. The files also reportedly included information on individuals and groups with close ties to Muslim communities.

MEF confirms archive and claims academic purpose

Following the Huffington Post report, the Middle East Forum acknowledged the existence of the archive but insisted its purpose was academic. The organization has not explained why it collected personal data on individuals who were not affiliated with any criminal investigation or legal proceeding, nor has it clarified how the information was obtained or stored. The scale of the database, spanning nearly 20 years, suggests a sustained effort to monitor Muslim life in the US rather than a limited research project, according to critics of the group.

Civil rights groups warn of Islamophobic agenda

Civil rights organizations responded sharply to the revelations, arguing that the Middle East Forum's activities serve an openly Islamophobic agenda and that the group has worked to spread misinformation about Muslims. The exposure of the database raises broader questions about how private organizations in the US gather and use personal data on religious and ethnic communities, particularly at a time when surveillance of minority groups remains a sensitive political issue. For Muslim Americans, the report reinforces long-standing concerns about being treated as a suspect community rather than as ordinary citizens.

Concerns echo in Türkiye and the wider Muslim world

The news is likely to resonate well beyond US borders, including in Türkiye, where scrutiny of Islamophobia in Western countries has grown in recent years. Turkish officials and civil society groups have repeatedly called on Western governments to take concrete steps against anti-Muslim discrimination and to hold accountable organizations that fuel hostility toward Muslim communities. The Middle East Forum's archive, if confirmed in full, would represent one of the most extensive known examples of systematic data collection targeting Muslims in a Western democracy, a development likely to intensify debates over privacy, religious freedom and the limits of private surveillance.