The United States has designated three Muslim Brotherhood chapters as terrorist organizations, targeting branches in Egypt, Jordan, and Lebanon while leaving other national organizations formally untouched. The move likely reflects a selective approach that focuses on groups Washington alleges have operational ties to violence, especially against US partners, rather than a blanket designation of the wider Islamist movement.
Legal Basis And Sanctions
The United States designated the Muslim Brotherhood chapters in Egypt, Jordan, and Lebanon as terrorist organizations on Tuesday, 13 January 2026. The announcement imposed far‑reaching sanctions on these three branches, marking a major escalation in Washington’s approach to the transnational movement.
The State Department classified the Lebanese Muslim Brotherhood as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, while also listing it and the Egyptian and Jordanian branches as Specially Designated Global Terrorists under existing counterterrorism authorities.
The action stems from a November 2025 executive order signed by President Donald Trump, which instructed senior US officials to review Muslim Brotherhood chapters worldwide for potential terrorist links. That directive provided the legal framework for the subsequent designations announced in January 2026.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the measures represent sustained efforts to counter what Washington views as violence and destabilizing activities connected to specific Brotherhood factions. The designations freeze any assets held under US jurisdiction, bar American individuals and entities from conducting business with the groups, and impose travel restrictions on members.
Responses From Designated Chapters And Regional Governments
The Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood rejected the designation as politically motivated, with acting general guide Salah Abdel Haq vowing to pursue legal challenges to overturn the decision. The organization denied that it directs, funds, or materially supports terrorism, and claimed that the move resulted from pressure by Israel and the United Arab Emirates.
In Lebanon, al‑Jamaa al‑Islamiya, widely identified as the Lebanese branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, similarly condemned the US action as a political step lacking any foundation in Lebanese or international judicial decisions. The group insisted it operates legally as a licensed political organization within Lebanon’s domestic framework.
Egypt’s Foreign Ministry, by contrast, welcomed the US designations as a pivotal decision that it said reflects the Muslim Brotherhood’s extremist ideology. The UAE and Saudi Arabia also praised Washington’s move, aligning it with their longstanding push to curb Brotherhood‑linked movements.
The Egyptian government has formally banned the Muslim Brotherhood since 2013, following the military ouster of President Mohamed Morsi. In Jordan, officials have moved in recent years to dissolve the traditional Brotherhood organization and restrict its activities, and a government spokesman said the US decision was consistent with Amman’s own steps against the group.
Alleged Terror Links And Operational Activity
US officials assert that the Egyptian and Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood chapters provided material support to Hamas. According to the Treasury Department, this support included facilitating the movement of fighters, assisting in weapons manufacture, and coordinating other terrorist activities on Hamas’s behalf.
The State Department alleges that the Lebanese branch was directly involved in launching rocket attacks into Israel after Hamas’s 7 October 2023 assault, in coordination with Hezbollah. Washington says these activities contributed to broader regional escalation, and the group’s current leadership has come under individual scrutiny in the new sanctions package. These actions form the first practical implementation of Trump’s executive order and signal that further national chapters could be reviewed for similar treatment.
Why Other Muslim Brotherhood Chapters Were Not Designated
Despite the sweeping tone of the executive order, Washington did not extend terrorist designations to all Muslim Brotherhood organizations worldwide. Several factors help explain why other chapters, including those in countries such as Kuwait, Tunisia, or Western states, were not included in the current round of sanctions.
First, US officials appear to have focused on branches where they allege there is relatively clear, current evidence of direct operational support to recognized terrorist organizations such as Hamas or active participation in violent attacks. Other national Brotherhood‑linked parties function mainly as political or social movements, including those in Tunisia, Morocco and elsewhere, and Washington may have judged that available intelligence did not yet meet the legal threshold required for designation.
Second, some Brotherhood‑affiliated entities operate as licensed political parties or parliamentary blocs within allied states, and a blanket designation could have complicated US relations with those governments or destabilized sensitive internal political balances. Limiting sanctions to the Egyptian, Jordanian, and Lebanese branches allowed Washington to target specific alleged security threats while avoiding an immediate rupture with partners whose political landscapes still include Brotherhood‑derived actors. Think of the Justice and Development Party in Morocco, which is embedded in the country’s political system and has strong following.
Third, US agencies often calibrate designations to preserve channels for engagement and avoid unintentionally driving all associated movements underground. By concentrating on chapters portrayed as closest to armed groups and cross‑border militant networks, Washington left open the option of dealing differently with other national organizations that claim to have renounced violence or confined their activities to legal politics and social outreach.
However, it is worth noting that US officials signaled that this is only the first implementation of the November 2025 executive order, indicating that additional Muslim Brotherhood chapters could face review and possible sanctions in the future. The current designations therefore reflect a phased, case‑by‑case strategy rather than a single, comprehensive judgment on the entire global movement.
