As we noted earlier, prisons are being considered "fertile ground for extremists" and that "politicians and even a few evangelical leaders have warned that Muslim inmates are ripe for terrorist recruitment...."

In response, "France's main Muslim organization has appointed its first national chaplain for prisons, [in] an effort to root out the causes of deadly religious extremism and prevent the spread of Islamic militancy behind bars. "

A spokesman for the organization stated the group was "responding with a high priority to the protection of the community and the French population overall against the slide to this political, violent form of radical Islam."

The chaplain, Moulay El Hassan El Alaoui, noted that Muslims constitute "about half" of those in French jails and that he will teach inmates "how to interpret the Quran."