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Zamzam Rattles Jordan’s Muslim Brothers

The launch of the moderate “Zamzam” Islamists organization presents a challenge for the Muslim Brotherhood.
A supporter of Jordan's opposition parties wearing a sign on his forehead shouts slogans demanding freedom for political prisoners, political and economic reforms, and access to government corruption cases during a demonstration after Friday prayers in Amman October 4, 2013. Anti-government protesters across the region have been using the four-fingered salute on a yellow background, which represents those who were killed in Cairo's al-Rabia Square in Egypt in August, as a tacit statement of opposition to th
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Jordan’s Muslim Brotherhood movement is facing its most serious challenge since it was first established as a charitable organization in the 1950s, with the Oct. 5 launch of the Zamzam Initiative by leading moderate Muslim Brotherhood figures. The event was attended by high-ranking Jordanians including former prime ministers and ministers, deputies and media personalities. The launch, which comes after two years of deliberations, was boycotted by Muslim Brotherhood officials, who had warned followers not to be associated with the initiative.

Although no mention of the Muslim Brotherhood was made during the official release, it was clear that the initiative projected a reformist vision by moderate Islamists inside the movement. Rahil Gharaibeh, the initiative’s architect and official spokesman, told Al-Monitor that one of the objectives is “to renew the Islamic discourse and present Islam as a cultural framework that encompasses the nation while emphasizing religious, sectarian, political and racial pluralism.”

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