US designates Muslim Brotherhood branches in Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan as ‘terrorist’ groups

The United States has formally designated Muslim Brotherhood organizations in Egypt, Lebanon, and Jordan as “terrorist” groups, marking a major escalation in Washington’s campaign against groups it claims threaten Israeli interests in the West Asia region.

The decision was announced on Tuesday, weeks after President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing his administration to initiate the process of blacklisting the organizations.

Under the move, the Department of the Treasury designated the Muslim Brotherhood branches in Egypt and Jordan as “specially designated global terrorists,” while the State Department applied a more severe label to the Lebanese branch, classifying it as a “foreign terrorist organization (FTO).”

The Trump administration cited support for the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas in the Gaza Strip and “activities against Israeli interests” in the region as, what it framed as, the reason for the designations.

“Chapters of the Muslim Brotherhood purport to be legitimate civic organizations while, behind the scenes, they explicitly and enthusiastically” support Hamas, the Treasury Department said in a statement.

The US designations make it illegal to provide material support to the affected organizations and impose sweeping economic sanctions aimed at cutting off their funding sources.

The so-called “FTO designation” also carries additional penalties, including barring members of the designated group from entering the United States.

Salah Abdel Haq, acting general guide of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, rejected the US designation and said the group would challenge it through legal means.

“The group categorically rejects this designation and will pursue all legal avenues to challenge this decision, which harms millions of Muslims worldwide,” Abdel Haq said in a statement.

He rejected allegations of “terrorism,” stating that the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood had not “directed, funded, provided material support for or engaged in terrorism.”

The official also said the decision was driven by external pressure. “This designation is unsupported by credible evidence and reflects external foreign pressure by the UAE and Israel rather than an objective assessment of US interests or facts on the ground,” he said.

Egypt’s foreign ministry, however, welcomed Washington’s designation of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood as a “pivotal step,” describing it as a reflection of what it called the group’s “danger” to regional and international security.

Cairo has outlawed the Muslim Brotherhood since 2013, following the military overthrow of Egypt’s democratically-elected President Mohamed Morsi, who had won elections after Islamic Awakening protests overthrew dictator Hosni Mubarak.

The overthrew was followed by the government’s carrying out sweeping crackdowns on the group’s members, which was widely reported to have caused massive casualties. Morsi, himself, died in custody in 2019.

The Muslim Brotherhood’s Lebanese affiliate, al-Jamaa al-Islamiya, also rejected the US designation, stressing that it was a licensed political and social organization operating openly under Lebanese law for decades.

“This move is a political and administrative American decision, not based on any Lebanese or international judicial ruling,” the group said in a statement, adding that it had no legal effect inside Lebanon.

The group said the designation “serves the interests of the Israeli occupation, which continues its aggressions against our country and people.”

Al-Jamaa al-Islamiya holds representation in the Lebanese parliament and has backed the Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah’s solidarity strikes in support of Palestinians in Gaza, who have come under a war of genocide by the Israeli regime.

Founded in 1928 by Egyptian scholar Hassan al-Banna, the Muslim Brotherhood has branches and affiliated organizations across West Asia, including political parties and social movements. The group and its affiliates have pledged commitment to peaceful political participation.

In Jordan, the Muslim Brotherhood’s political arm, the Islamic Action Front, won 31 seats in the House of Representatives during the 2024 elections. However, the Jordanian government banned the organization last year, citing, what it called, links to a sabotage plot.

The US designations came amid longstanding efforts by right-wing activists and lawmakers to target Muslim organizations for their criticism of the Israeli regime.

Following Trump’s executive order, Republican governors in Texas and Florida moved to designate the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), along with the Muslim Brotherhood, as “terrorist” organizations.

CAIR has filed lawsuits challenging the designations.

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