The Muslim Brotherhood and its influence

by Martin Aslan

The collapse of the Ottoman Empire gave way to a new religious base embodied by the Muslim Brotherhood founded by the Egyptian Hassan el-Banna. This movement, considered a terrorist group by the Arab Republic of Egypt, came to power in 2012 following the Arab Spring. Türkiye lent its support to the movement represented by Mohamed Morsi. The Muslim Brotherhood is an influential movement in Muslim lands whose objective is the restoration of a caliphate. Türkiye's shady dealings with the Muslim Brotherhood muddy the waters and make it difficult to understand Türkiye’s relations with its neighbours and allies.

The sources of a new religious era

Until then dominated by the Ottoman Empire, the Muslim world underwent a religious rupture at the beginning of the 20th century. The abolition of the Ottoman Caliphate in 1924 by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk gave way to the creation of a movement to combat ‘Western secularism and the blind imitation of the European model’. 

This was Hassan el-Banna's aim when he founded the Muslim Brotherhood in Cairo in 1928. The movement grew rapidly during its first 20 years1. The movement's influence was confirmed during the tensions between Palestinians and Israelis in the mid-1940s. In 1945, Saïd Ramadan2 created an armed Arab branch in Palestine to fight against Zionism. As a result, many militants took part in the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. This historic step gave the movement a real raison d'être. 

Politico-religious objectives

The Muslim Brotherhood spread a religious, moral, social and political ideology after the fall of the Ottoman Empire. The aim was to restore the Caliphate in the Muslim world, in opposition to the secular and progressive values that were beginning to develop in Muslim-majority countries. More specifically, the movement opposes Franco-British influence in the Middle East. The creation of a Jewish state is also a subject of struggle exploited by the movement. The concept of jihad was thus revived in opposition to pan-Arabism and Western influences. However, rivalries remain between Islamist movements. Close to the Salafist doctrine, based on the strict application of Sharia law, the Muslim Brotherhood is in direct competition with the Saudi Wahhabi movement. 

Spread of the Muslim Brotherhood doctrine

From 1948 onwards, events in Egypt marked a turning point in the development of the movement. The Brotherhood was banned by Prime Minister Mahmoud an-Nokrashi Pasha. In retaliation, he was assassinated by the most radical members of the movement. In 1949, the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al-Banna, was assassinated on the orders of King Farouk. After the movement was dissolved in 1954, it was repressed by Nasser's new Republic. These events caused many of its supporters to flee the country. Already turned towards the near abroad, such as Palestine, Syria, Iraq and North Yemen, members of the Brotherhood also took refuge in Europe, such as Great Britain, Germany and France, and studied at universities. Initially an area of refuge, Europe offered a more permanent foothold with the creation of Islamic mutual aid organisations from the 1960s onwards. Many Al-Qaeda terrorist activists began their career within the Muslim Brotherhood. This was the case of Ayman al-Zawahiri, head of the terrorist organisation after the death of Bin Laden. Today, the Brotherhood is a heterogeneous and multifaceted nebula on a global scale, considered terrorist by Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Syria and Russia.

A source of inspiration in Türkiye

The end of the Ottoman Caliphate, decided by the new republic of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, was the cause of the emergence of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt. It was not until the early 1970s that an Islamist movement, the Millî Görüş, emerged in Türkiye. Created by Necmettin Erbakan, this movement was directly inspired by the Muslim Brotherhood. As political parties linked to the movement were banned and dissolved, the AKP found its origins within the Millî Görüş itself. 

Erdoğan, meanwhile, continues to use the four-fingered Rabia gesture associated with Muslim Brotherhood protesters, although he says it also has a domestic meaning, signifying nation, flag, homeland and state. 

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's shady game

While the Muslim Brotherhood and Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's Islamo-conservative movement are not competitors, Erdoğan plays a shady game with the Brotherhood. After the fall of Mohamed Morsi1, Erdoğan constantly denounced the ‘tyranny’ of the new President Sissi. He accused Egypt's leaders of being directly responsible for Mohamed Morsi's death in prison. Many Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood leaders have found refuge in Türkiye. Thanks to logistical support and the help of media platforms, Türkiye enables Egyptian activists to continue their struggle in complete safety. Today, isolated diplomatically, Erdoğan is seeking to re-establish links with his enemies such as Syria, the Gulf monarchies and Egypt. Even if it means letting go of the Muslim Brotherhood, in 2021 Ankara did not hesitate to cut off funding for channels such as El-Sharq TV (which belongs to the Muslim Brotherhood) based in Türkiye, or Watan TV and Mekameleen. These media were immediately ordered to stop broadcasting political programmes, particularly those critical of Egypt. The order particularly targeted El-Sharq and Mekameleen TV, which are veritable propaganda tools for Islamist opponents.

https://twitter.com/abdelbariatwan/status/1372684876411977732?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1372684876411977732%7Ctwgr%5E0071f1e8f645d465f644a51bd258f006da2548cc%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.24hdz.com%2Ferdogan-freres-musulmans-sissi%2F 

“Erdoğan let go of his mentor Erbakan, then his wrestling allies Abdullah Gul and Ahmed Davutoglu. The third to be let go is Ali Babacan, the architect of the economic renaissance. What is strange about him dropping the Muslim Brotherhood and shutting down their TV channels? Hamas may be the next target. only God knows”

https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2023/04/turkey-egypt-inch-closer-restoring-ties-fms-meet-ankara

On 13 April 2023, the foreign ministers of Egypt and Türkiye met in Ankara. Ahmed Cavusoglu proposed an official meeting between the two presidents after the next elections to turn a page and develop joint projects. The sincerity of this call is doubtful given the reliability of the political and ideological alliances led by President Erdoğan's Türkiye.