Email from Counter Extremism Project (CEP) Counter Extremism Project Welcomes Florida and Texas State-Level Designations of Muslim Brotherhood CAIR as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (New York, N.Y.)— The Counter Extremism Project commends the decisions by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott to designate the Muslim Brotherhood and the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) as Foreign Terrorist Organizations. CEP CEO Ambassador Mark D. Wallace stated: “These steps acknowledge a long-standing and well-documented reality: the Muslim Brotherhood is not merely a sociopolitical movement but a transnational extremist network whose ideology has inspired violence and whose organizational web stretches across continents, including right here in America. “The Brotherhood’s influence is not limited to foreign battlefields. Its networks have created front organizations, charities, advocacy groups, and civic institutions operating in many countries, including Western democracies—facilitating political influence, fundraising, and ideological outreach. This has long presented a serious challenge to security, civic institutions, and free and democratic societies. “By designating the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization, Florida and Texas have taken a bold, preventive step aimed at disrupting this network’s capacity to operate, recruit, fund, and influence—and at protecting citizens from its potential threat. “The Trump administration, via a recent executive order, has likewise begun the process of designating certain chapters of the Muslim Brotherhood as Foreign Terrorist Organizations or Specially Designated Global Terrorists. We hope that other states—and ultimately the federal government—will follow the example set by Florida and Texas, to ensure that all entities operating in the U.S. under the banner of the Brotherhood or its affiliates are likewise subject to terrorist designations.” The Muslim Brotherhood was founded in Egypt in 1928 as a transnational Islamist movement seeking to implement Sharia and expand political power through both social services and ideological outreach. Over the decades, while portraying itself as a peaceful political force, some of the Brotherhood’s offshoots have engaged in or supported violent activities and radicalization—most notoriously its Palestinian branch, the terror group Hamas. Founded in 1987, Hamas has carried out suicide bombings, rocket attacks, and other acts of terror targeting civilians, including the October 7, 2023, terror attack which killed nearly 1,200 people and during which 251 individuals were taken hostage. The Muslim Brotherhood is already designated by Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain, among others. In 2007, U.S. prosecutors, during the largest terrorism-funding case in U.S. history, publicly identified CAIR as an unindicted co-conspirator and part of a broader network linked to Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood. To read CEP’s report on the Muslim Brotherhood, click here. To read CEP’s report on the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al-Banna, click here. To read CEP’s 2015 post on CAIR, click here. To read CEP Senior Director Dr. Hans-Jakob Schindler’s op-ed today on the threat of Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood in Europe, click here.   The Counter Extremism Project (CEP) is a nonprofit and non-partisan international policy organization working to combat the growing threat posed by extremist ideologies. CEP depends on the generosity of its supporters. If you value what we do, please consider making a donation. DONATE Were you forwarded this email? Subscribe for yourself here. Counter Extremism Project (CEP) | PO Box 3980 | NEW YORK, NY 10185 US Unsubscribe | Update Profile | Constant Contact Data Notice