Thread by @shadihamid

I'm starting a running thread on the Muslim Brotherhood, in light of the news that Trump is pushing to designate the group as a terrorist organization

First, here's a 5 minute @BrookingsFP primer I did on why it's a bad idea:

As I note in the video, there isn't a single American expert on the Muslim Brotherhood who supports designation. That's because if you study the organization, there's really no way you can conclude, from a factual standpoint, that it meets the designation criteria

Here's a piece I wrote in @TheAtlantic on whether the "facts" even matter when debating if the Brotherhood is a terrorist organization, since the Trump administration isn't really making a fact-based argument for designation but rather an ideological one: theatlantic.com/international/…

If you're looking for a detailed, legal case against designating the Brotherhood as a terrorist organization, read this excellent @lawfare piece by @will_mccants & @benjaminwittes 👇🏽

They conclude: Designation "would be illegal"

lawfareblog.com/should-muslim-…

Here's a short @BrookingsFP primer I wrote with @rashiddar on distinguishing between different kinds of Islamist groups—which is precisely what the Trump administration refuses to do: brookings.edu/blog/markaz/20…

If you're interested in the early history of the Muslim Brotherhood, Richard Mitchell's book is the definitive work: amzn.to/2PGQ26a

For more on the role of Sayyid Qutb in the 1950s, see @FawazGerges's fascinating book 'Making the Arab World' amzn.to/2DIXLMf

Here's my review essay in @ForeignAffairs which looks at the broader trajectory of the Muslim Brotherhood and discusses the rivalry between Qutb and President Nasser—who was himself a Brotherhood member in the 1940s: foreignaffairs.com/reviews/review…

For more on the Brotherhood's evolution in the 1970s, @anhistorian's 'Answering the Call' is an excellent resource: amazon.com/Answering-Call…

I discuss the evolution of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt and Jordan from the late 1970s through 2013 in my book #TemptationsOfPower, drawing on hundreds of hours of conversations with members and leaders in both groups: amazon.com/Temptations-Po…