Both states seemed intent on curtailing – or in the case of the UAE, eliminating – the space for independent Islamist activism.Ī mere year later, this campaign has proven difficult to sustain due to the pivotal position held by the Muslim Brotherhood and associated Sunni political movements. The two states then embarked on an unprecedented campaign to pressure Qatar to temper its opposition to the Abdel Fattah al-Sisi-led government in Egypt and support for the Muslim Brotherhood and other activist Sunni Islamist movements across the Middle East. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates passed new terrorism laws in 2014 that took the extraordinary step of specifically naming the Muslim Brotherhood among a list of banned terrorist groups. As Saudi Arabia and its allies lined up in support of the military government in Egypt, they adopted new legal measures to silence dissent and criminalize support for the deposed Egyptian government and its Muslim Brotherhood backers.
It has been a difficult two years for the Muslim Brotherhood in the Gulf states. Less noted are the implications of these strategic moves for politics within Gulf states, where Muslim Brotherhood groups have been on the defensive, especially since the overthrow of the Muslim Brotherhood-led government of Mohamed Morsi in Egypt in 2013.
Outreach to Muslim Brotherhood affiliates – led by Saudi Arabia – is already significantly reshaping the regional order. Faced with the dual challenge of confronting an Iran emerging from under the shadow of international sanctions and an “Islamic state” solidifying on their borders, several Gulf states are reconciling their relations with the Muslim Brotherhood and other activist Sunni Islamist movements.
0 kommentar(er)
