from Religion Media Centre
The United States has designated Muslim Brotherhood branches in Egypt, Lebanon and Jordan as terrorist organisations. The US will now block any assets owned by the Muslim Brotherhood, criminalise transactions with its members and impede their ability to travel to the country.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said: “These designations reflect the opening actions of an ongoing, sustained effort to thwart Muslim Brotherhood chapters’ violence and destabilisation wherever it occurs”.
The Muslim Brotherhood was founded in 1928 in Egypt, aiming to promote a society governed by Islamic principles or Sharia law through social, political, and educational work.
In Britain, it has influenced groups focussing on charitable purposes.
The UK government has not added the Muslim Brotherhood to the list of proscribed terrorist groups under the Terrorism Act.
A government review in 2014 found that while some parts of the Brotherhood’s ideology and activities were contrary to British values, the organisation itself had not been directly linked to terrorism within the UK, and therefore did not meet the legal threshold for proscription.
Associated Press report here.