An Egyptian court ruled on Monday that all Muslim Brotherhood activities were illegal, effectively freezing the group’s finances in the latest strike against the Islamist movement.
According to an Egyptian newspaper, Daily News Egypt, Attorney Alaa Essam, a member of Tagamoa party and partner of Mahmoud Abdallah, the man who filed the complaint that led to the court’s decision today, explained “[the] threat of the Muslim Brotherhood organization upon national security is apparent, and thus, requires an urgent court order to halt the danger.” The urgent court order allowed for the emergency disbandment of the Muslim Brotherhood based on the decision that the organization “pos[ed] an imminent threat.”
Many senior figures in the Islamist group, such as general guide Mohammed Badie, were also detained based on allegations of violence and murder, BBC News reports. Ibrahim Mounir, another leading Brotherhood member, said the ruling was a “totalitarian decision,” and made clear that the group would not dissolve, despite the court’s ruling.