The United States government has designated the Muslim Brotherhood factions in Egypt, Jordan, and Lebanon as terrorist organizations, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced, a decision that toughens the foreign and security policy pursued by President Donald Trump's administration.

Rubio explained that the measure stems from an executive order signed by Trump last November, which mandated the classification of the Muslim Brotherhood factions as terrorist organizations due to their alleged ties to Hamas, an organization considered terrorist by Washington.

“The United States will use all available resources to deprive these Muslim Brotherhood factions of the means necessary to engage in or support terrorism,” Rubio stated in an official statement.

The designation entails the freezing of assets and property under U.S. jurisdiction, as well as a prohibition on U.S. citizens and entities from conducting transactions with the groups or individuals. sanctioned.

The State Department specified that the Lebanese branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, as well as its Secretary General, Muhammad Fawzi Taqqosh, were included on the list of foreign terrorist organizations, the most severe classification.

Washington accuses this faction of having aligned itself with Hamas and the Shiite group Hezbollah, in addition to reactivating its al-Fajr Forces and launching rockets against northern Israel after the attacks of October 7, 2013.

Reactions in the Middle East

The decision was immediately welcomed by Egypt, a country that declared the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist organization in 2013. The Egyptian Foreign Ministry described the US measure as “a major step” and asserted that it confirms “the danger of this group and its extremist ideology,” as well as the threat it, in its view, represents to regional and international security.

In Jordan,The government recalled that the local branch of the Muslim Brotherhood has been dissolved since 2020 by court order and that all its activities were banned in April 2025, following the arrest of members accused of plotting an attack. Amman avoided commenting directly on Washington's decision, simply noting that the group already lacks legal status in the country. In addition to the Lebanese branch, the Trump administration sanctioned Muslim Brotherhood factions in Egypt and Jordan for "providing material support to Hamas." According to US authorities, these actions are part of a broader strategy to weaken networks that they claim finance or support terrorist activities in the Middle East. The Muslim Brotherhood, founded in Egypt in 1928, has historically insisted that it is a political and social movement that renounces violence. However, the US designation reinforces the international isolation of several of its branches and could have effects on asylum applications, visas, and diplomatic relations in the region. Muslim Brotherhood leaders in exile have rejected the accusations, calling the move a “political decision” influenced by external pressures. Meanwhile, in states like Florida and Texas, Republican governors have already begun using these designations to scrutinize local Muslim civil organizations, foreshadowing a long legal battle in US courts.Republican governors have already begun using these designations to scrutinize local Muslim civil organizations, foreshadowing a long legal battle in US courts.Republican governors have already begun using these designations to scrutinize local Muslim civil organizations, foreshadowing a long legal battle in US courts.