Iran and the Muslim Brotherhood: A historical relationship
Secret reports have confirmed the close ties between the Muslim Brotherhood and the Iranian government. Documents revealed a clandestine meeting between Iran and the Brotherhood to establish a framework for cooperation in the region. The documents indicated that prominent officials from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard‘s Quds Force met with Brotherhood leaders in Turkey in April 2014.
A historical relationship
The relationship between Iran and the Muslim Brotherhood dates back through many generations, rooted in shared ideologies since the Brotherhood’s inception. Commenting on this relationship, terrorism expert Ahmed Ban stated, “Iran’s relations with the Muslim Brotherhood span generations, beginning in the late 1930s when Mustafa Khomeini met Hassan al-Banna, with no details disclosed about the meeting or the agreements reached.” He added, “This was followed by the establishment of the ‘Doctrine of Proximity of Schools’ in 1947, promoting the formalization of the relationship between Mohammad Taqi al-Qummi and Hassan al-Banna.”
Ban pointed out that the third milestone was the success of the so-called Iranian revolution in 1979, when the Brotherhood sent a plane carrying leaders of some extremist parties to congratulate Iran on the revolution’s success, further solidifying the relationship. This was followed by former Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi reviving the “historical relationship” with his visit to Tehran.
Sharing ideas
Jasim Mohammed, President of the European Center for Counterterrorism Studies, confirmed that many commonalities have united Iranian thought with that of the Brotherhood, foremost among them being the focus on destabilizing the region’s security. Mohammed stated, “There are commonalities between Iran and the Brotherhood, particularly in their opposition to the Arab region, as the Brotherhood’s ideology is not far from political Islam in Iran.”
He continued, “The timing of the secret meeting between the Brotherhood and Iran in Turkey in 2014 coincided with the Brotherhood‘s defeat in Egypt. It was an attempt to salvage what could be saved for the Brotherhood and its other branches, with a terrorist inclination to destabilize security in Egypt, Libya, and Yemen.”
American special envoy for Iran, Brian Hook, affirmed that the meeting between the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and the Muslim Brotherhood in Turkey was akin to a meeting between two terrorist entities, not a surprising development, alluding to intelligence leaks disclosed by Intercept.
