The terrorist-linked Muslim Brotherhood (MB), echoing other jihadist groups, has pledged to “shed blood” and “wage war” against the United States after President Donald Trump officially recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and directed his government to move the American embassy to the city.
In an Arabic-language statement disseminated by the Ikhwanonline.info website, MB declares, “Jerusalem is an Islamic and Arab land, for which we shed blood, freedom, and life, and we wage war against every aggressor and every supporter of aggression.”
MB later urges “Palestinian factions and Islamic movements to ignite an uprising [‘intifada’] throughout the Islamic world against the Zionist occupation and the American administration.”
Protests against Trump’s decision have broken out in various Muslim-majority countries.
Echoing his MB ally, Ismail Haniya, the leader of the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, also called for a new “intifada,” an uprising against Israel in response to the U.S. president’s decision.
The Brotherhood’s condemnation of Trump’s Jerusalem announcement is consistent with the position other terrorist groups, namely the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) and al-Qaeda, which have threatened a bloodbath in response to the American president’s move:
4) BREAKING: #AQ Central issues statement calling the development a "blatant aggression by the Crusader Trump," and calls for "targeting [American] vital interests and the interests of its Zionist and Crusader allies everywhere" https://t.co/kcGI6lSWGp
— Rita Katz (@Rita_Katz) December 7, 2017
In the statement, MB proclaims, President Trump’s decision renders the United States “an enemy of the Arab world and international Islamic components,” later adding:
The American president has exploited the weakness of the Muslim world … and decided to support the Zionist lobby to support the Zionist project on the Palestinian territories, but he should know that his decision makes … [the United States] a state sponsor of the occupation. A country hostile to all freedom in various parts of the world.
Palestinians have designated East Jerusalem as the capital of their desired state.
Territorial disputes have long plagued the Israeli-Palestinian relationship with Jerusalem at the epicenter of the ongoing conflict.
Trump’s decision has drawn the ire of some U.S. allies and the Muslim world, which argues that the move will end so-called peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians.
Nevertheless, President Trump said Wednesday:
We are no closer to a lasting peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians. It would be folly to assume that repeating the exact same formula [refusing to move the American embassy to Jerusalem or to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital] would now produce a different or better result.
Therefore, I have determined that it is time to officially recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. While previous presidents have made this a major campaign promise, they failed to deliver. Today, I am delivering.
Opposition to Trump’s announcement has made for some strange bedfellows, namely MB and countries like Egypt and Saudi Arabia that have designated the group as a terrorist organization.
Despite Republicans being in control of Congress, lawmakers have not been able to pass GOP-sponsored legislation to officially name the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist group.
Early this year, Reuters reported that a “factional” debate is taking place within the Trump administration over adding the Muslim Brotherhood to State’s list of foreign terrorist organizations.
U.S. allies Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Egypt have all banned MB as a terrorist organization.
Officials from those countries have described U.S. efforts to follow their lead as a positive step.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.