An Interview With Muslim Brotherhood’s #2, Mohammed Habib
Mohammed Habib is slated to become the next Supreme Leader of the [1] Muslim Brotherhood.
His rise to the position of deputy supreme leader became possible when his predecessor in the job was sentenced to five years in prison by an Egyptian military tribunal for financing a banned organization — alongside 25 other members of the Muslim Brotherhood — and he ascended to the position. With the advanced age of the current supreme leader, it’s quite possible that Habib will become the next leader of the organization shortly.
The PJM interview with Habib was conducted by Egyptian blogger [2] Sandmonkey in the Leadership Office of the Muslim Brotherhood.
They discussed a wide range of topics, including the Muslim Brotherhood’s support for Sudanese President [4] Omar al-Bashir against the ICC, their relationship with Hamas, ties to CAIR, and their continuing struggle against what they view as a vast Zionist-American conspiracy. But first things first….
SM: What does the Muslim Brotherhood think of the two candidates in the upcoming elections in the U.S?
Mohamed Habib: We would naturally like to see the end of the current regime and that their practices are not to be repeated by the coming administration. We don’t anticipate such change taking place if Senator John McCain wins, for he seems to be following the same line as the current American President George Bush. We are not so sure about Senator Obama either, because of his
SM: Since it just happened, what do you think of the [5] Shura Council fire? Do you think this is an act of fate or does it indict someone?
Mohamed Habib: In the name of God, most merciful, most graceful, I think that its representative of the deterioration and the negligence that is entrenched in all of the government’s institutions. One would assume that with such an institution there would be a little bit of care or interest exercised in protecting it, since the tools to prevent such accidents are available. But, unfortunately, we saw that the response to the incident wasn’t on the required level to stop it, and while the firemen showed incredible courage, their level of preparedness and training were not at the desired level.
SM: We had Army helicopters carrying buckets of water from the
Mohamed Habib: That’s of course a shameful incident, but it’s a part of a bigger picture. And it expresses the tragedy and the suffering that the Egyptian people live in.
SM: Sir, let’s now talk about some international incidents. Very recently, the ICC has issued an indictment of the Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir over
Mohamed Habib: First of all, this whole scenario is a political one of the first degree, and the Security Council is the organization that proposed this whole thing, and in reality, we know that the Security Council is under the control of the current American administration. And there is an American agenda and project in the region — and in
SM: What are the goals of the Muslim Brotherhood?
Mohamed Habib: The Muslim Brotherhood has an Islamic, civilized, uplifting project that is based on the idea that
SM: The image of the Muslim Brotherhood in the U.S. and in other western countries — while we aren’t going to say it’s a bad one — is not the image you would like to portray for yourselves.
Mohamed Habib: That’s true!
SM: Why do you think that is?
Mohamed Habib: There are two parts to that. The first part is related to the tyrannical and oppressive regimes in our countries, that try to project a mental image (a really scary and horrifying image) in the minds of the western world that we are against democracy, and freedom, and human rights in general. The other part is the Zionist-American project that upholds double standards and has a special agenda that contradict the interests of our Ummah, and thus finds in the Muslim Brotherhood an obstacle in the way of executing that agenda. Therefore, they unfortunately promote a very wrong and negative image of us. This forces us to act and try to communicate with think tanks and research centers, academics in universities, the people, and the media, whether the local or the international one.
SM: Fine, but we can claim that the Egyptian media is controlled by the Egyptian government, while the western media is not controlled by the western governments. What’s stopping the right image of you to reach the world then? Are they conspiring against you?
Mohamed Habib: No, but naturally there are centers in the
SM: Is there a Muslim Brotherhood in the
Mohamed Habib: I would say yes. There are Muslim Brotherhood members there.
SM: Then what are they doing there?
Mohamed Habib: No, there are already existing institutions; there are laws and a constitution that they operate under in order to have a role in serving the American society. They are part of the American society and they want to an active positive role in it, and a part of that is to spread a positive image of Islam along with its values, culture, history and teachings.
SM: This is naturally very important. Who represents you in the
Mohamed Habib: Well, there are there those who do represent us, who do that role.
SM: But it’s not CAIR, right? The Council for American Islamic Relations? Many people say that they are your front. Other people say that its ISNA. But back to CAIR, some people from the Muslim Brotherhood have denied having a connection with CAIR. Do they really represent you?
Mohamed Habib: Ehh, this is a sensitive subject, and it’s kind of problematic, especially after 9/11 …
SM: For them to say that there is a relationship between you two?
Mohamed Habib: Yes. You can say that.
SM: Gotcha. What kind of relationship does the Muslim Brotherhood have with Hamas? Do you offer them support of any kind?
Mohamed Habib: Hamas, like any Muslim Brotherhood entity, is not related to the other entities. But we do support them. We support them with ideas. We support them with advice and vision. We incite the people — in
SM: Thank you for your time sir.
Mohamed Habib: Thank you.