Jordan has arrested 11 people on suspicion that they were involved in illegally raising $42 million for the Muslim Brotherhood over the past several years.
The move comes amid a crackdown against the Muslim Brotherhood, which Jordanian authorities banned in April after revealing an alleged armed plot against the kingdom. The 11 suspects were not identified.
The Brotherhood used the money in Jordan to finance cells, election campaigns, including for student unions, and as salaries to politicians loyal to the group, Jordan's state news agency reported, without naming the politicians.
“The Brotherhood was running a huge financial network,” the agency said. It listed sources for the money as illegal donations, including some supposedly raised to help the Palestinians in Gaza, rental properties outside Jordan, masked investments, as well as membership subscriptions.
In April, the authorities seized $5.6 million in Brotherhood cash stashed a compound near Amman that was raided by security forces, the agency said. The same month, Jordan banned the activities of the Brotherhood, a week after a dozen of its members were implicated in the alleged plot against the country.
The suspects were charged with terrorism-related crimes over an alleged plan to manufacture weapons and drones and use them to destabilise Jordan.
The Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood is an affiliate of the group founded and outlawed in Egypt. Membership is now illegal in Jordan and all its offices have been closed.
Even before the ban, the Brotherhood had been considered officially dissolved in Jordan, but outlawing it has further limited its room for manoeuvre. Earlier this month, Jordan launched legal action against organisations “operating under the influence” of the Brotherhood.
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Other must-tries
Tomato and walnut salad
A lesson in simple, seasonal eating. Wedges of tomato, chunks of cucumber, thinly sliced red onion, coriander or parsley leaves, and perhaps some fresh dill are drizzled with a crushed walnut and garlic dressing. Do consider yourself warned: if you eat this salad in Georgia during the summer months, the tomatoes will be so ripe and flavourful that every tomato you eat from that day forth will taste lacklustre in comparison.
Badrijani nigvzit
A delicious vegetarian snack or starter. It consists of thinly sliced, fried then cooled aubergine smothered with a thick and creamy walnut sauce and folded or rolled. Take note, even though it seems like you should be able to pick these morsels up with your hands, they’re not as durable as they look. A knife and fork is the way to go.
Pkhali
This healthy little dish (a nice antidote to the khachapuri) is usually made with steamed then chopped cabbage, spinach, beetroot or green beans, combined with walnuts, garlic and herbs to make a vegetable pâté or paste. The mix is then often formed into rounds, chilled in the fridge and topped with pomegranate seeds before being served.
PROFILE OF INVYGO
Started: 2018
Founders: Eslam Hussein and Pulkit Ganjoo
Based: Dubai
Sector: Transport
Size: 9 employees
Investment: $1,275,000
Investors: Class 5 Global, Equitrust, Gulf Islamic Investments, Kairos K50 and William Zeqiri
Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale
Starring: Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Nagarjuna Akkineni
Director: Amith Krishnan
Rating: 3.5/5
Strait of Hormuz
Fujairah is a crucial hub for fuel storage and is just outside the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping route linking Middle East oil producers to markets in Asia, Europe, North America and beyond.
The strait is 33 km wide at its narrowest point, but the shipping lane is just three km wide in either direction. Almost a fifth of oil consumed across the world passes through the strait.
Iran has repeatedly threatened to close the strait, a move that would risk inviting geopolitical and economic turmoil.
Last month, Iran issued a new warning that it would block the strait, if it was prevented from using the waterway following a US decision to end exemptions from sanctions for major Iranian oil importers.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
