US designates Muslim Brotherhood organisations in Egypt, Lebanon and Jordan as terrorist groups

Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera
9h ago
The United States designated Muslim Brotherhood organisations in Egypt, Lebanon and Jordan as terrorist groups, triggering legal and political pushback from the organisations and reactions from regional governments.
US designates Muslim Brotherhood organisations in Egypt, Lebanon and Jordan as terrorist groups
A What happened
The United States designated Muslim Brotherhood organisations in Egypt, Lebanon and Jordan as terrorist groups on Tuesday. The US Treasury labelled the Jordanian and Egyptian groups as specially designated global terrorists, and the US State Department blacklisted the Lebanese organisation as a foreign terrorist organization. Salah Abdel Haq, acting general guide of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, rejected the designation and said the group will pursue legal avenues to challenge it. Egypt’s Foreign Ministry welcomed the US designation of the Egyptian branch and called it a pivotal step.
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Key insights

  • 1

    US designations carry legal and financial penalties: The designations make it illegal to provide material support to the targeted groups, impose economic sanctions, and the foreign terrorist organization label adds a US entry ban for members.

  • 2

    Targeted organisations and governments issued conflicting characterisations: The Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood denied terrorism allegations and said it will challenge the designation, while Egypt’s Foreign Ministry called the designation a pivotal step and cited security concerns, and al-Jamaa al-Islamiya said the US move has no legal effect within Lebanon.

  • 3

    US state-level actions extended the terrorism label to a US Muslim civil rights group: Texas and Florida designated CAIR along with the Muslim Brotherhood as terrorist groups, and CAIR sued while denying links to the Muslim Brotherhood.

Takeaways

The US terrorist designations of Muslim Brotherhood organisations in Egypt, Lebanon and Jordan are in effect, with sanctions and legal restrictions applied and public challenges and endorsements issued by affected parties.

Topics

World & Politics Policy & Regulation International Affairs Security & Defense

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