Long considered an alliance of the US, Jordan now hosts more than 3,500 American troops and a string of US troops.
Jordan’s Middle Eastern country has banned Muslim Brotherhood groups following claims that some of its members had planned to destabilise the country.
“It has been proven that members of the group are operating in the dark and engaged in activities that could destabilise the country,” Jordan’s Home Ministry said in a statement on April 23.
“The disbanded members of the Muslim Brotherhood tampered with security and national unity, disrupting security and public order.”
The Muslim Brotherhood, one of the region’s oldest and most influential Islamist movements, has denied any involvement in a suspected conspiracy.
The Islamic Front of Action (IAF), the political wing of the Jordanian Brotherhood, is the country’s largest opposition party.
Since 1992, the IAF has been legally operated in Jordan, enjoying quite a popular support and has offices in many towns and cities.
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After last year’s legislative election, the IAF became the largest opposition bloc in the parliament.
However, most assembly sheets are held by representatives who are loyal to the long-dominated Hashemite dynasty of Jordan, led by King Abdullah II.
IAF Executive Director Wael Al-Saqa denied the party’s systematic ties with the Muslim Brotherhood and described the IAF as an independent political party operating within the purview of the law.
Earlier this week, Al-Sacca argued that the IAF “has nothing to do with other organisations.”
The IAF added that it has been firmly committed “for constitutional order, laws and regulations.”
Nevertheless, interior minister Mazin Al Farie said on April 23 that all activities related to fraternal love are banned nationwide and anyone who finds that it promotes the group’s ideology will face prosecution.
In the context of the prohibition, he added that all IAF offices will be closed, while all party assets and property will be confiscated by the state.
Opponents of the Muslim Brotherhood, currently banned in most Arab countries, say the group is a dangerous terrorist group.
But the Brotherhood says it denied violence decades ago and now pursues only peaceful means of achieving its political goals.
US President Donald Trump will greet Abdullah II bin al-Hussein on his arrival at the White House in Washington on February 11, 2025. Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
Destabilization claim
According to Home Minister Al Farie, IAF members have been accused of planning an attack on sensitive locations and security targets in Jordan.
However, he did not name the target of the suspicious plot.
Last week, Jordanian authorities arrested 16 party members for allegedly planning to attack several Jordanian targets (with rockets and drones) after being trained in Lebanon.
Authorities said they found a secret facility for the manufacture of rockets and drones. The Epoch Times claimed it could not be independently verified.
Long considered an important US ally in the Middle East, Jordan currently hosts a series of more than 3,500 American troops and a series of US troops.
With a population of over 11 million, Jordan crosses the border with the West Bank occupied by Syria, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Israel and the Israeli occupying West Bank.
Jordan is home to millions of Palestinian refugees and their descendants. Most of them fled to the country after the creation of Israel in 1948 and after the Arab-Israel War in 1967.
In 1994, Jordan signed a peace treaty with Israel and became the second Arab country to do so after Egypt.
In recent years, the Jordanian government has cracked down on political opponents and the public after seeing laws aimed at curbing objections, according to international rights groups.
The government says each will tolerate public speeches that do not incite violence.
Reuters and the Associated Press contributed to the report.
