Trump signs executive order targeting certain Muslim Brotherhood chapters as terrorist groups

By Fox News · Fox News

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday directing Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to begin designating certain chapters of the Muslim Brotherhood as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists. The order, invoking the Immigration and Nationality Act and the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, cites the group’s involvement in violence across the Middle East , including rocket attacks on Israel following the Oct. 7, 2023, assault. The move begins a 30-day review led by the State and Treasury Departments to identify Brotherhood chapters in Egypt, Jordan, and Lebanon for possible designation, which could freeze assets, restrict travel, and criminalize material support for affiliated entities. "The Muslim Brotherhood, founded in Egypt in 1928, has developed into a transnational network with chapters across the Middle East and beyond," Trump’s executive order reads. "Relevant here, its chapters in Lebanon, Jordan, and Egypt engage in or facilitate and support violence and destabilization campaigns that harm their own regions, United States citizens, and United States interests. TRUMP RE-DESIGNATES IRANIAN-BACKED HOUTHIS AS TERRORISTS: 'THREATEN[S] SECURITY OF AMERICAN CIVILIANS' "For example, in the aftermath of the October 7, 2023, attack in Israel, the military wing of the Lebanese chapter of the Muslim Brotherhood joined Hamas, Hezbollah, and Palestinian factions to launch multiple rocket attacks against both civilian and military targets within Israel," the order continues. "A senior leader of the Egyptian chapter of the Muslim Brotherhood, on October 7, 2023, called for violent attacks against United States partners and interests, and Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood leaders have long provided material support to the militant wing of Hamas. "Such activities threaten the security of American civilians in the Levant and other parts of the Middle East, as well as the safety and stab…