London bridge charity grants over £1 million to Muslim group amid probe of trustee ties

The City Bridge Foundation, which oversees the upkeep of London’s iconic bridges, allocated £1.17 million to the Muslim Charities Forum (MCF) as part of its social-justice funding programme. MCF’s treasurer, Shuaib Yusaf, simultaneously serves as chief executive of Al-Khair Foundation (AKF), a charity now facing a Charity Commission probe over alleged Hamas affiliations. The probe intensified after U.S. prosecutors charged Mohammad Yousef Hasna, an employee of an AKF partner charity in Gaza, with conspiring to provide material support to Hamas.

AKF and MCF assert that the CBF grant is earmarked solely for domestic activities in London and has not been transferred to AKF or its overseas operations. Yusaf has stepped back from his trustee role at MCF while the inquiry proceeds. Critics argue that the foundation’s surplus funds should prioritize bridge maintenance rather than contentious charitable grants.