Trump Moves To Label Muslim Brotherhood a Foreign Terrorist Organization By The Media Line Staff President Donald Trump said Sunday that his administration is moving ahead with a formal decision to label the Muslim Brotherhood a foreign terrorist organization in the US, a step he described to Just the News as being taken “in the strongest and […]
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The Media Line: Trump Moves To Label Muslim Brotherhood a Foreign Terrorist Organization
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Trump Moves To Label Muslim Brotherhood a Foreign Terrorist Organization
By The Media Line Staff
President Donald Trump said Sunday that his administration is moving ahead with a formal decision to label the Muslim Brotherhood a foreign terrorist organization in the US, a step he described to Just the News as being taken “in the strongest and most powerful terms” with paperwork now being finalized. The move follows years of internal debate in Washington over how to treat the transnational Islamist movement and comes as Republican officials in several states press for tougher measures against groups they link to terrorism.
Founded in Egypt in 1928, the Muslim Brotherhood has long been accused by critics of spreading Islamist ideology, nurturing extremist offshoots, and fueling instability across the Middle East. In Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott recently designated both the Muslim Brotherhood and the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) as foreign terrorist and transnational criminal organizations, declaring, “These radical extremists are not welcome in our state and are now prohibited from acquiring any real property interest in Texas.”
The federal initiative dovetails with efforts by Republican lawmakers such as Sen. Ted Cruz and Rep. Mario Díaz-Balart, who have pushed legislation to put the Brotherhood on the State Department’s terrorism list. Cruz pointed to the group’s links to Hamas, which has carried out deadly attacks on Israeli civilians, and argued, “They are committed to the overthrow and destruction of America and other non-Islamist governments across the world.”
CAIR and other Muslim advocacy organizations condemn the designations as defamatory and unconstitutional, accusing officials of fueling anti-Muslim bigotry. Texas authorities, acting under Abbott’s directive to “identify, disrupt, and eradicate terrorist organizations engaged in criminal activities,” have opened investigations into the Muslim Brotherhood and CAIR. Supporters of the crackdown say the Brotherhood’s ideology has inspired terror groups from al-Qaida to the Islamic State and Hamas, citing the group’s motto, which declares that “jihad is our way,” as proof of its goals.