White House Weighs Historic Move Against Muslim Brotherhood

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio revealed in an interview Tuesday with broadcaster Sid Rosenberg that the United States is working to designate the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization.

Rubio noted that the process is complex due to the movement’s many branches worldwide: “There are many branches, and we have to designate each of them separately.”

The U.S. is not alone in taking action against the group. In April, Jordan’s Interior Minister Mazen al-Faraya announced a ban on all Muslim Brotherhood activities in the Hashemite Kingdom, officially declaring the organization illegal.

Founded in Egypt, the Muslim Brotherhood has served as the ideological foundation for Hamas and the Islamic Movement in Israel. The latter has split into two factions: the Northern Branch, outlawed for its ties to Hamas, and the Southern Branch, under which the Ra’am party led by Mansour Abbas operates.

During the same interview, Rubio dismissed international criticism of Israel, saying, “Peace will not be achieved as long as Hamas controls Gaza.” He added that the war with Hamas will end “the day the terror group stops being a threat to the State of Israel,” emphasizing: “That’s the bottom line people don’t understand.”