Jordanian media has reported that the political arm of the Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood has referred to of its members to an internal party court over the issue of running in upcoming elections. According to a report in the Jordan Times:
The Islamic Action Front (IAF) has referred two of its members to an internal party court for defying leadership orders barring them from running in the November 9 elections, according to Islamist sources. The two members are Ahmed Qudah from Ajloun and Madallah Tarawneh from Karak, according to Muslim Brotherhood Spokesperson Jameel Abu Baker. He said the Islamist movement has been clear about its position regarding the elections and has informed all its members about the boycott decision. “All members of the movement are expected to respect the group’s decision; those who do not abide by it will be referred to a party court,” Abu Baker told The Jordan Times over the phone yesterday. He said no decision has been taken regarding the two men, but conceded that they face expulsion from the IAF, the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood. IAF Secretary General Hamzah Mansour said the party will not hesitate to take action against those who defy the group’s orders, but declined to confirm whether the two IAF members had actually broken ranks with the movement. ”
The IAF is the political action arm of the Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood and earlier posts have reported on what has been described as the crisis within the organization. Generally unreported are the ties between the IAF and the US Muslim Brotherhood. The former IAF caretaker was Ishaq Farhan, a Jordanian of Palestinian origin, one of the three founders of the IAF, and a former education minister and senator. Mr. Farhan is also listed as a director of the International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT), founded in the U.S. in 1980 by important members of the Global Muslim Brotherhood who wished to promote the “Islamization of Knowledge.” IIIT was associated with the now defunct SAAR Foundation, a network of Islamic organizations located in Northern Virginia that was raided by the Federal government in March 2002 in connection with the financing of terrorism. In 2000, Mr. Farhan was denied entry to the U.S. after having had his visa revoked in the prior year without informing him. The New York Times reported at that time that unidentified American diplomats called Mr. Farhan a “moderating force” and that he “as kept a distance from the vociferous opposition to peaceful relations with Israel.” However, in 2003 a media report said that the IAF had “declared a jihad in favor of Iraq and Palestine if the US attacks Iraq.” More recently, after congratulating President Obama on his election, the IAF called his decision to send more troops to Afghanistan “a hostile step against the Arab and Islamic worlds. In 2009, the IAF also called Israeli actions in Gaza “the ugliest crime in history.”