US President Donald Trump announced on Sunday that he would designate the Muslim Brotherhood as a foreign terrorist organization, a move targeting a group long accused of destabilizing the Middle East and radicalizing young Muslims.

“It will be done in the strongest and most powerful terms,” Trump told Just the News, adding that “final documents are being drawn.”

The announcement follows a Just the News report detailing the Muslim Brotherhood's activities and growing concerns within the Trump administration. Trump has been considering the designation since his first term.

Founded in Egypt in 1928, the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) is an Islamist organization with global chapters, political parties, and affiliated movements. The group has long faced accusations of spreading Islamist ideology, nurturing extremist offshoots, and fueling instability across the Middle East.

Trump’s statement came just days after Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced plans to designate both the Muslim Brotherhood and the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) as foreign terrorist organizations and transnational criminal organizations.

“The Muslim Brotherhood and CAIR have long made their goals clear: to forcibly impose Sharia law and establish Islam’s ‘mastership of the world,’” Abbott said in a statement. “The actions taken by the Muslim Brotherhood and CAIR to support terrorism and subvert our laws through violence, intimidation, and harassment are unacceptable.”

Republican lawmakers, including members of the House and Senate, along with some Democrats, have urged the US State Department to designate the Muslim Brotherhood as a foreign terrorist organization.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio indicated in August that the designation was “in the works,” but noted that the process was complex, due to the Brotherhood’s numerous branches and affiliates worldwide.

Several countries in the Middle East have already taken official steps against the Muslim Brotherhood.

Egypt designated the group as a terrorist organization on 25 December 2013, following a suicide bombing in Mansoura that killed 16 people.

Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates followed suit in 2014, with the UAE also adding the Brotherhood’s local affiliate, Al-Islah, to its terrorist list. Bahrain has similarly classified the group as a terrorist organization.

Jordan has recently intensified its actions, formally banning all activities of the Muslim Brotherhood in April 2025 and declaring membership illegal.

Russia banned the Muslim Brotherhood in 2003 via a Supreme Court ruling, with Tajikistan and Kazakhstan following suit in 2006.

In Libya, the House of Representatives in Tobruk declared the Brotherhood a terrorist entity in May 2019 amid ongoing political divisions.

Syria outlawed the group in 1980, imposing the death penalty for membership.

Western countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, and the European Union have not designated the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization, although some offshoots, like Hamas, are classified differently.

As of 2025, US legislative efforts are underway to reconsider this stance. Meanwhile, France has taken steps to address the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood and political Islamism, with President Emmanuel Macron directing the government to propose measures in May 2025.