Mohamed Soudan

Mohamed Soudan (born 1956) is a senior member of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood Organization and its now defunct political wing, the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP). He was foreign relations secretary underneath previous president, Mohamed Morsi'' reported:

“It was accused of orchestrating a wave of violence to destabilise the country after the military overthrew President Mohammed Morsi in July 2013 ��Saturday’s ruling by the Cairo Administrative Court came after a report by its advisory panel that noted the FJP’s leaders had been accused, and in some cases convicted, of murder and inciting violence.”

Muslim Brotherhood’s controversial history

The Muslim Brotherhood is a Sunni Islamist organization created in Egypt in 1928 by Hassan al-Banna. ''BBC'' stated that:

“The movement initially aimed simply to spread Islamic morals and good words, but soon became involved in politics, particularly the fight to rid Egypt of British colonial control and cleanse it of all Western influence.

While the Ikhwan rotherhoodsay that they support democratic principles, one of the group’s stated aims is to create a state ruled by Islamic law, or Sharia. Its most famous slogan, used worldwide, is: ‘Islam is the solution.’”

One of the Brotherhood's most notable and famous theorists, Sayyid Qutb – labeled by ''The'' ''Washington Post'' as the Brotherhood's “intellectual godfather” – was widely understood to be one of the main inspirations for Osama bin Laden. Qutb's famous book, “''Milestones''”, became a “classic manifesto of the terrorist wing of Islamic fundamentalism”, according to ''The New York Times'.'' Qutb also served as an inspiration to bin Laden's successor and current leader of Al-Qaeda, Ayman Al-Zawahiri, who has frequently quoted Qutb in his own writings.
The Egyptian government designated the Brotherhood as a terrorist organization in December 2013.
As of February 2017, the Trump administration was considering whether to designate the Brotherhood as a foreign terrorist organization, stemming from the group's long history with violence. The group has links to terrorist actors and organizations including its Palestinian branch, Hamas, as well as Al-Qaeda.

Review of Brotherhood activities in the UK

In 2014, World Media Services, publisher of the Brotherhood's Ikhwaan Press, set up a location in a nondescript London suburb, keeping a low profile given the Egyptian government's pursuit to arrest and sentence members of the organization.

''Al Jazeera'' reported that the Brotherhood's activities in London “caused concern in Britain”, and that David Cameron – then prime minister – “commissioned an internal government review into the philosophy and activities of the Muslim Brotherhood” to ultimately probe any “path of extremism and violent extremism, what its connections are with other groups, what its presence is here in the United Kingdom.”

Britain's foreign and domestic intelligence services, MI6 and MI5, were to aid in the investigation of violent activities by the Brotherhood, along with its senior leaders – such as Soudan – living in the U.K.

Statements on Muslim Brotherhood

In 2012, Soudan addressed the Brotherhood's stance on interpretation of Islam, and said that while they do not wish to establish an Islamic state, they ultimately prefer “a slower and more moderate way. With alcohol, for instance, Soudan said he’d rather it not be sold, but recognizes it’s big business.”

Since Morsi's overthrow, the Brotherhood has been warring with the current government and President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi, who declared that the Brotherhood is welcome to resume participation in the political scene, only under the conditions that “they decide to renounce violence.”

Soudan commented on the Brotherhood's involvement in the conflict in a 2014 statement:

“The Muslim Brotherhood and the Alliance did not and will not stop participation in the revolutionary movement – until the bloody military junta is fully defeated and completely ousted, and fair retribution is achieved.”

In a February 2017 press statement, somewhat contradictory to his earlier proclamation, Soudan said:

“Violence has no place in the Muslim Brotherhood’s chosen and established approach or in its ideology. We always condemn violence as a means to solve problems or stop oppressors.”

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Soudan, Mohamed
1956 births
Living people
Freedom and Justice Party (Egypt) politicians
Muslim Brotherhood politicians