US Senate considers blacklisting Muslim Brotherhood

Republican Senator Ted Cruz presented a bill in the Senate that proposes adding the Muslim Brotherhood to the list of Foreign Terrorist Organisations (FTOs).

Cruz, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, announced in a tweet that he is proud of proposing this bill, which was presented on Wednesday in cooperation with Republican senators Jim Inhofe, Pat Roberts and Ron Johnson.

He asserted that this bill is part of: “The US’ fight against radical Islamic terrorism.”

According to a report published on the Senate’s website, Cruz stated in the bill’s introduction that: “The Muslim Brotherhood should be held responsible for financing and promoting radical Islamic terrorism,” while appreciating the ongoing endeavour of Trump’s administration to unveil the true face of terrorism and fight it as a potential threat.

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He added that he looks forward to receiving additional information required for approving this bill by the US State Department, which will determine whether or not the Muslim Brotherhood meets the legal criteria to be included on the list of FTOs.

“Many of the United States’ closest allies in the Arab World have long ago concluded that the Muslim Brotherhood is a terrorist group that seeks to sow chaos throughout the Middle East,” Cruz stated.

Senator Inhofe claimed that the Muslim Brotherhood: “Since it was founded in Egypt, has sought to incite hatred against the Christians, the Jews and other groups of Muslims.” He also expressed his pride in reintroducing the bill.

It is noteworthy that Cruz has continuously been advocating for including the Muslim Brotherhood in the FTOs list, as he submitted a bill in 2015, and then resubmitted it for the second time in 2017, before attempting to introduce a similar initiative on Wednesday.

The US Foreign Terrorist Organisations law requires basic criteria in order to classify any foreign group or organisation as terrorist. The most important of which is carrying out terrorist activities or having the ability to do so, in a way that threatens national security or the security of US citizens.

The Muslim Brotherhood rejected all terrorism accusations, while emphasising that these allegations are political and aim to destroy a “peaceful organisation” and its leaders.

US politicians questioned the utility of including the Muslim Brotherhood in the FTOs list, considering that the group’s activities are peaceful and politically-oriented in many Muslim countries, with reference to the prominent Islamic presence in Tunisia’s politics.

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