RECOMMENDED READING: “Muslim Brotherhood Split On Saudi Strikes In Yemen”

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The Al-Monitor news portal has translated an article providing further insights into the reactions of the Global Muslim Brotherhood to the ongoing conflict in Yemen. According to the report,  most of the reactions were clear, with the exception of the Brotherhood’s, whose Yemeni branch supported the operation and Egyptian branch rejected it:

April 13, 2015 TRANSLATOR Tyler Huffman The Muslim Brotherhood released a statement condemning the Houthis’ removal of Yemeni President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi and called on all parties to use dialogue to end the crisis. Amr Darag and Yahya Hamad, two Brotherhood leaders, clearly expressed their support for Operation Decisive Storm on Twitter. However, they condemned Egypt’s participation under the leadership of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, saying that Sisi, like the Houthis, came to power through a coup. Furthermore, a number of Brotherhood supporters in Egypt demonstrated March 27 against the military operation, describing it as ‘a blow of shame.’

Rassd, a pro-Brotherhood news site, published a March 27 statement from the international Muslim Brotherhood condemning the former Yemeni regime of Ali Abdullah Saleh, who’s allied with the Houthis in Hadi’s overthrow. The statement condemned what it called ‘regional support for coups,’ which Rassd claimed was a reference to ‘the Gulf regimes’ support for the July 3 coup in Egypt, and Iran’s support for the Houthi coup.’

Amid the Brotherhood’s rejection of the participation of Egyptian forces in Operation Decisive Storm, both the Islah Party (the Brotherhood’s political arm in Yemen) and Yemeni Brotherhood activist Tawakkol Karman expressed their support for the operation. They thanked all of the Arab forces participating in the operations and did not criticize the Gulf or Egyptian forces, which Karman specifically praised on Twitter.

Ahmed Ban, a researcher specializing in political Islam, told Al-Monitor that the Egyptian Brotherhood’s position is in line with Yemen’s Brotherhood, which rejects the Houthis and their ally Saleh. Yet, Ban said there is likely a state of confusion between the branches of the Brotherhood, given the Egyptian branch’s rejection of Cairo’s participation and the Yemeni branch’s support. In light of Brotherhood supporters taking to the streets to denounce the operation, Brotherhood leaders in Egypt are incapable of connecting with their bases and supporters, who reject any measure taken by the current Egyptian authorities under Sisi.

Read the rest here.

The GMBDW reported in March on a statement of “regret” over the Saudi intervention issued by the Yemeni Muslim Brotherhood as well as on the support for the intervention expressed by two major Saudi religious organisations both close to the Global Muslim Brotherhood. Since then, we have noted that the Yemeni Al-Islah Party, essentially the Muslim Brotherhood in Yemen, had issued a statement solidly in support of the Saudi intervention and holding the Houthi rebels responsible. Israeli media has also reported that Hamas released a message of support for the ousted Yemeni president, Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, considered to represent support for the Saudi-led military operation in Yemen.  We have also discussed an Egyptian newspaper article analyzing the conflicts within the Global Muslim Brotherhood resulting from the Saudi intervention.

Earlier in March, the GMBDW had reported that the Houthis had accused the Muslim Brotherhood of cooperating with Al Qaeda. Other GMBDW reporting on the conflict in Yemen has included:

  • The GMBDW reported in September 2014 0n the takeover of the Yemeni capital Sana by Houthi militants
  • In November 2014, we discussed an article that looked at the losses suffered by the Muslim Brotherhood as a result of the Houthi offensive
  • In  December 2014, we reported that the Muslim Brotherhood in Yemen had signed an agreement with Shiite Houthi militants to end the conflict between them.

The Yemeni Congregation for Reform is also known as the Al-Islah Party in Yemen,  identified by an Israeli research center  as the Muslim Brotherhood in Yemen.

For our profile on Al-Islah, go here.

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