Muslim Brotherhood part of governments in ME, including Turkey, says USA Secretary of State
In a statement made on Wednesday (June 14) at a hearing of the House Committee on Foreign Relations, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said that labeling Muslim Brotherhood as a ‘terrorist organization in its entirety’ poses further complications for the politics and security of the Middle East since the group has over 5 million supporters and since some are also placed in a number of governments across the region.
Giving Bahrain and Turkey as examples of such governments where there is a presence and influence of the group, Tillerson said: "There are elements of the Muslim Brotherhood that have become parts of governments… Those elements... have done so by renouncing violence and terrorism."
Statements of Tillerson came amid crisis over decision of Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the UAE, Egypt and several other countries to cut all diplomatic ties with Qatar over its support for the Muslim Brotherhood, as well as, other ‘extremist’ groups.