Muslim Brotherhood

Founded in 1928 by Hasan al-Banna, the Muslim Brotherhood is perhaps the most influential and enduring Islamist organization of the modern period. On the heels of the Islamic reformist projects of Muhammad Abduh, Jamal al-Din al-Afghani, and Rashid Rida, and within the context of British imperialism in Egypt, al-Banna envisioned the brotherhood as an authentic Islamic alternative to modern political ideology and as a sustainable decolonization program. Concentrating its efforts on community service and basic education, the brotherhood has been a central component in the social and political life of modern Egypt despite suffering a considerable period of persecution by successive regimes since its founding. As both a formal organization and an international movement, it has also greatly influenced the Islamist politics of other Arab ...