Egypt Declares Muslim Brotherhood a Terrorist Group

Photo Credit: Ahmed Ashraf/AP

Photo Credit: Ahmed Ashraf/AP

Egypt’s military-backed interim government has declared the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist group, criminalising all its activities, its financing and even membership to the group from which the country’s ousted president hails.

The announcement on Wednesday is a dramatic escalation of the fight between the government and the Brotherhood, which has waged near-daily protests since the 3 July popularly backed military coup that toppled President Mohamed Morsi. An Egyptian court had banned the group in September.

Hossam Eissa, the minister of higher education, read out the cabinet statement after a long meeting, saying: “The cabinet has declared the Muslim Brotherhood group and its organisation as a terrorist organisation.”

He said the decision was in response to Tuesday’s deadly suicide bombing targeting a police headquarters in a Nile Delta city which killed 16 people and wounded more than 100. The Brotherhood has denied being responsible for the Mansoura attack, for which an al-Qaida inspired group has claimed responsibility.

“Egypt was horrified from north to south by the hideous crime committed by the Muslim Brotherhood group,” Eissa said. “This was in context of dangerous escalation to violence against Egypt and Egyptians [and] a clear declaration by the Muslim Brotherhood group that it still knows nothing but violence.”

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