Muslim brotherhood in Egypt and Jordan: history of modern Islamic fundamentalism

The Muslim Brotherhood has played a significant role in the history of the Middle East in the twentieth century. The organization was founded on religious fundamentalist principals striving to ensure that Islam would remain the cornerstone of Middle Eastern society. Yet the social and political events of the twentieth century ensured that the Muslim Brotherhood had very different experiences in different countries. In Egypt they faced repression, imprisonment and often violent confrontation with the government. This situation in turn led to an escalation of the Brotherhood's tactics and a radicalization of the organization. In Jordan the Brotherhood achieved a symbiotic relationship with the monarchy, exchanging support for legitimacy. This situation led to stability, continued moderation in the organization's platform and an increased influence over Jordanian society. A lesson that can be learned from comparing the Muslim Brotherhoods' experiences in Egypt and Jordan is that allowing moderate fundamentalist organizations a limited role in society with access to the public is a more effective means of ensuring peace and stability than attempting to suppress the fundamentalist organizations