The Trump administration is taking steps to designate chapters of the Muslim Brotherhood as terrorist organizations.
The Muslim Brotherhood is an Islamist organization that promotes its radical ideology through political and civic programs, as well as through violence and terror – Hamas was founded as an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood. The group threatens American interests, regional stability, and the security of our allies.
Several allies in the Middle East and around the world have already taken similar actions. This move also aligns with bipartisan legislation in both the Senate and the House.
Founded in 1928, the Muslim Brotherhood is a transnational Islamist movement that seeks to reshape societies and governments with the goal of establishing a new empire and caliphate based on Islamic supremacy.
Over the decades, a wide range of radical Islamist groups have been influenced by its ideology. It directly and indirectly supports a number of designated and undesignated groups that carry out terrorist attacks.
Several key U.S. allies in the region — including Egypt, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Jordan — have already designated or banned the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization.
Other U.S. allies — including Israel, Austria and France — have also taken action against the Muslim Brotherhood.
Qatar is the Brotherhood’s most significant financial sponsor, and its state-owned media network Al Jazeera pushes Muslim Brotherhood propaganda. Turkey also provides funding to the Brotherhood and is a safe haven for its leaders.
The Muslim Brotherhood operates through a broad global network and in many Western countries. The Brotherhood’s networks have been connected to radicalization, terrorist funding, and efforts to influence political and civic groups aimed at weakening and destroying the United States and our allies.
In the U.S., individuals and organizations with ties to the Brotherhood have been convicted of financing Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and al-Qaeda.
Hamas is the Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood and has been designated a terrorist organization by the United States since 1997.
President Trump signed an executive order on November 24, 2025, directing the Departments of State and Treasury to formally assess and report whether certain branches of the Muslim Brotherhood meet the legal criteria for designation as a Foreign Terror Organization (FTO).
The administration should quickly follow through on this critical process of designating Muslim Brotherhood affiliates and supported entities.
The administration should also ensure the Muslim Brotherhood and its affiliated groups do not participate in the redevelopment of Gaza. For Gaza to succeed, efforts must be taken to deradicalize the population from Muslim Brotherhood ideology.
Congress should also pass the bipartisan Muslim Brotherhood Terrorist Designation Act of 2025—introduced by Reps. Mario Díaz-Balart (R-FL) and Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) in the House, and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) in the Senate. The legislation requires the administration to make determinations on applying sanctions to the Muslim Brotherhood and its affiliates.
