Members of both houses of Congress are pushing for the Muslim Brotherhood to be designated as a terror organization after an Egyptian man yelled antisemitic things while attacking Jews in Boulder, Colo., with what the FBI described as a “makeshift flamethrower” and an incendiary device on Sunday.
The suspect in the attack expressed support for the Muslim Brotherhood on social media, CNN reported, but there is no reference to that in the criminal complaint.
Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) wrote to U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday urging him to conduct a “comprehensive investigation” into designating the Muslim Brotherhood as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.
Moskowitz noted that “numerous” states, including close U.S. partners, have designated the group, which is affiliated with Hamas, or have taken action against it, including Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain has said that it poses a threat to national security.
Designating the brotherhood as a terror group would “enhance the ability of U.S. law enforcement and intelligence agencies to disrupt financial networks and recruitment activities connected to its affiliates,” the congressman wrote.
On the same day that Moskowitz penned the letter, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) stated that he is renewing an effort, “which I have been pushing for my entire Senate career,” in the upper chamber to designate the brotherhood.
“The Muslim Brotherhood used the Biden administration to consolidate and deepen their influence, but the Trump administration and Republican Congress can no longer afford to avoid the threat they pose to Americans and American national security,” Cruz wrote.
Cruz first introduced the Muslim Brotherhood Designation Act in 2014. A House version was introduced in multiple congressional sessions, but support dwindled over time.
“Got a House sponsor?” wrote Rep. Randy Fine (R-Fla.), responding to Cruz’s latest announcement.
The last version of the Senate bill would have directed the White House to assess within 60 days whether the brotherhood meets the criteria for designation as a foreign terrorist organization. If the administration decided it didn’t meet that standard, it would have to provide a detailed explanation showing its work.
There were reports toward the end of Trump’s first term that he would designate the Muslim Brotherhood, but he did not.
“The Muslim Brotherhood is an anti-Western, antisemitic, racist organization that is a threat to U.S. national security and should be classified as a Foreign Terrorist Organization,” stated Hussain Abdul-Hussain, a research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. “Thank you, Sen. Cruz, for doing this.”
