Elizabeth HagedornIt’s a group whose leader became Egypt’s first freely-elected president just over a year ago. Now the Muslim Brotherhood has been branded a terrorist group in its own country.
That’s according to Egypt’s military-backed interim government. It made the announcement Wednesday, saying the group has a history of violence and pointing to a recent bombing at a police headquarters in Cairo as proof. (Via ITN)
The government blamed the Muslim Brotherhood for the deady attack — even though the group condemned the bombing and denied having any part in it. (Via Euronews)
A court already dealt a major blow to the group when it banned all Brotherhood activities back in November, but Al Jazeera notes there's been growing pressure by the military on the government to take this latest step and criminalize membership in the group. (Via The Guardian)
The group was actually outlawed for most of its 85-year existence. But after the overthrow of President Hosni Mubarak in 2011, the group was allowed to work openly. (Via ABC)
Then its leader — Mohammed Morsi — became Egypt’s first democratically-elected president. (Via PBS)
But his time as president was cut short when the military overthrew him this July. Since then, thousands of the movement's supporters have been arrested in a police crackdown and its leaders put on trial. (Via CBS)
As for Morsi, he faces trial for a slew of charges, including organizing a prison break during the 2011 uprising. His supporters say the charges are wrong and unconstitutional. (Via BBC)
When Morsi was ousted, army-backed leaders laid out a roadmap for transition to a new, elected government. In mid-January, Egypt will vote on a new constitution, followed by presidential elections later in the year.
