Who's behind vote to label Muslim Brotherhood a terror group?
After the House Judiciary panel voted along party lines to force a State Department ruling, opinions remain split over the true motivation behind the step.
Republicans say their only motivation for designating the Muslim Brotherhood a terror group is to keep Americans safe.
Critics, however, also suspect a trio of outside influences: Egypt. The United Arab Emirates. Donald Trump.
The House Judiciary Committee voted 17-10 along party lines Feb. 24 to require the State Department to take action against the Islamist group or justify its refusal to. The bill, while it has little to no chance of becoming law, is nevertheless sure to be welcomed by US allies such as Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi who have taken flak for their uncompromising stance against the Brotherhood.
"We don't know exactly who is behind this," said Mongi Dhaouadi of the Center for the Study of Islam and Democracy, a Washington think tank that supports working with nonviolent political Islamist groups. "But we definitely think that Sisi's lobbying [for] it, possibly the UAE is behind it."
