Washington Sanctions Muslim Brotherhood Leader and Presses UK to Designate Group a Terrorist Organization
New U.S. sanctions have targeted a Muslim Brotherhood leader residing in London, a move that is increasing pressure on the British government to designate the group as a terrorist organization.
Late Thursday, the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced sanctions against Mahmoud al-Ibary, a senior Muslim Brotherhood figure based in London.
Washington accuses him of helping raise funds for entities linked to Hamas, effectively barring him from entering the United States and freezing any potential assets he may hold within U.S. jurisdiction.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that individuals who support Hamas, whether through charitable fronts, companies, or undisclosed financial networks, “will be exposed, sanctioned, and held accountable.”
Who Is Mahmoud al-Ibary?
The U.S. Treasury Department identified him as the secretary-general of the Muslim Brotherhood’s General Secretariat. He is regarded as the third-ranking figure within the group’s international organization, which has been designated as a terrorist organization in several countries around the world.
Many describe him as “the mysterious man within the Muslim Brotherhood.” He is considered responsible for the organization’s financing, financial networks, and media activities, as well as clandestine cells allegedly involved in transferring funds through multinational companies operating in Europe, Africa, and Latin America.
Born in 1952, al-Ibary served as a member of the group’s senior leadership body before being elected secretary-general of the international organization in 2023. He is also a member of the group’s Shura Council in Europe.
Sources familiar with Muslim Brotherhood affairs said that al-Ibary, who holds Austrian citizenship, is seeking to tighten his control over the organization’s internal structures by promoting figures aligned with him to influential executive positions. This would allow him to build a bloc of support for his ambition to become acting Supreme Guide, succeeding Salah Abdel Haq, who represents the London faction and is expected to leave his post at the end of this year.
The sources added that al-Ibary is behind a project aimed at “rebranding the Muslim Brotherhood,” in cooperation with several leaders of the international organization.
Context
The sanctions come at a time when pressure is growing within Britain for London to adopt a tougher stance toward the Muslim Brotherhood. The United Kingdom has so far neither banned the group nor designated it as a terrorist organization, despite the fact that other countries, including Egypt and Jordan, have outlawed it.
The United States has also designated three branches of the organization in Egypt, Jordan, and Lebanon as “terrorist” organizations.
Pressure on Britain and Calls for a Terrorist Designation
According to a report in the British newspaper The Telegraph, the move is expected to increase pressure on London to take tougher measures against the Muslim Brotherhood.
Britain has neither banned the Muslim Brotherhood nor designated it as a terrorist organization. However, the group is banned in Jordan and Egypt, where it was founded more than a century ago.
The United States has designated the group’s branches in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, and Sudan as terrorist entities.
The newspaper noted that the move represents a test for Britain’s new prime minister, Adi Burnham, as he seeks to build a working relationship with U.S. President Donald Trump.
In this regard, Robin Simcox, the former British Commissioner for Countering Extremism, welcomed the sanctions imposed on al-Ibary.
Speaking to The Telegraph, he said that sanctioning al-Ibary represented “an important step,” while urging the British government to adopt a firmer approach toward the group’s activities.
He added: “We cannot rely on Washington to take action on an issue that is primarily a domestic matter.”
He continued: “I have consistently urged the government to adopt a proactive approach to directly addressing the challenge posed by the Muslim Brotherhood. I hope that this will now happen.”
Hamas Funding Fronts Targeted by Sanctions
Hamas is widely regarded as an ideological offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood.
As part of the same sanctions package, the U.S. Department of the Treasury also targeted other entities that it said had been used as fronts to raise and transfer funds to the al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’s military wing.
