Trump orders review to label Muslim Brotherhood chapters as terrorist organisations

Trump declares Muslim Brotherhood chapters terror outfits

US President Donald Trump has directed his administration to consider designating certain Middle Eastern chapters of the Muslim Brotherhood as foreign terrorist organisations. The executive order tasks Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent with reviewing the activities of branches in Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, and other countries, giving them 30 days to prepare a report and 45 days to act.

The order states that these chapters “engage in or facilitate and support violence and destabilisation campaigns.” It also references the Lebanese branch’s military wing firing rockets at Israel after the October 7, 2023, attack, and an Egyptian leader encouraging violent actions against US partners.

The Muslim Brotherhood, founded in Egypt in 1928, is a pan-Islamist movement that has grown influential across the Middle East. While some leaders reject violence, the organisation remains controversial. Egypt banned it in 2013 following the ouster of former president Mohamed Morsi, while Jordan also outlawed it this year.

The US designation would allow Washington to freeze assets of the group and bar members from entering the country. The move follows Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s recent state-level designation of the Brotherhood as a terrorist and transnational criminal organisation.

The White House emphasised that Trump is confronting the group’s transnational network, which “fuels terrorism and destabilisation campaigns against US interests and allies in the Middle East.” France has also recently taken steps to curb the group’s influence domestically.