Egyptian media is reporting that Saudi Arabia has arrested nine university professors for their alleged links to the Muslim Brotherhood. According to an Ahram Online report:
Saudi Arabia
May 26, 2014 Saudi Arabia has arrested nine university professors for their alleged links to the banned Muslim Brotherhood movement, media reported on Monday. Investigators found the professors, two Saudis and the rest from neighbouring countries, had been involved with ‘foreign organisations’ based on ‘voice recordings and emails’ linked to them, Okaz daily reported.
It identified the organisation as the Muslim Brotherhood, designated by the interior ministry in March as a ‘terror’ group.
The investigation should be completed by mid-June, said the daily which is close to the government.
If convicted, the group could be jailed for 10-15 years, after which the foreigners would be deported, it added.
Saudi Arabia and its neighbour the United Arab Emirates have cracked down on Islamists accused of links to the Brotherhood and other Islamist groups.
The GMBDW reported earlier this month that three well-known imams in Saudi Arabia’s Southern Province had been banned for life from delivering sermons after they were found to be connected to the Muslim Brotherhood.
The GMBDW reported in March that Saudi Arabia had formally designated the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization and was among a group of Gulf countries that had recalled their envoys from Qatar over the issue. However, we also reported that the Saudi Muslim World League (MWL), historically close to the Muslim Brotherhood, had just concluded a global conference in the name of King Abdullah which included among its speakers two important leaders in the Global Muslim Brotherhood. We thought at that time it was possible that Saudi Arabia may not fully understand the global Brotherhood or perhaps were prepared to continue its support of its Western elements while attempting to limit or destroy the Brotherhood presence in the Gulf. However, we further reported last week that a top aide to Global Muslim Brotherhood leader Youssef Qaradawi had been received by the MWL Secretary-General. As we noted at that time, given Qaradawi’s enormous visibility and prominent role in the recent conflict between Qatar and its Gulf neighbors, it is unlikely that Saudi Arabia is acting out of ignorance and appears to confirm our analysis that for whatever reason, the MWL is being allowed to conduct itself outside of declared Saudi policy. The above report further suggests some kind of “disconnect” between Saudi domestic and foreign policy regarding the Global Muslim Brotherhood.
