By Pierre A. Maroun

Iran’s Islamic Republic has become the financial engine powering a cross-sectarian militant alliance linking the Muslim Brotherhood (MB), Hamas, Hezbollah, Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), and Houthis. What once seemed an ideological contradiction, Sunni Islamists cooperating with Shi’a militants, has hardened into a single, well-funded, well-coordinated, and well-controlled, network built on Tehran’s money, weapons, and political direction.

Recognizing this, President Donald Trump issued a November 24, 2025, executive order directing the State and Treasury Departments to evaluate Muslim Brotherhood chapters in Lebanon, Jordan, and Egypt for designation as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTO) and Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGT.) The order reflects a major shift US policy. Washington now views MB branches not as political movements, but as financial and logistical partners in Iran’s regional proxy architecture.

Iran’s Financing Model Rewards Escalation

Iran’s funding to Hamas and Hezbollah has surged since the October 7, 2023, attacks. Tehran’s goal is not stability; it is controlled escalation.

• Hamas receives $350 million annually, with Iran covering up to 90% of its budget.

• Hezbollah receives $700 million to $1 billion a year, supporting an arsenal of more than 150,000 rockets.

• MB-inspired groups such as PIJ and Lebanon’s Jamaa al-Islamiya receive tens of millions more.

Iran’s investment transforms ideology into capability. Trump’s directive is designed to strike at the financial arteries that sustain this system.

The Secret to Iran’s Success

Sanctions have failed to break Iran’s network because Tehran built a parallel financial ecosystem running outside the state banking system.

Key components include:

• Cryptocurrency: Iran and its proxies raised over $130 million (2021–2023) through crypto wallets.

• Criminal enterprises: Hezbollah’s global smuggling routes, from West Africa to Venezuela to Europe, generate hundreds of millions. There are strong allegations that Türkiye is helping Iran to smuggle funds to LH through syria.

• Charitable fronts: MB-style NGOs and real-estate endowments in Gaza, Lebanon, Turkey, and Europe disguise Iranian transfers as “humanitarian aid.”

The recent 2.2-ton cocaine seizure in Ireland exposed a sophisticated financial pipeline linking Iranian and Hezbollah operatives to Latin American and European trafficking networks. These profits are laundered and funneled back to sustain militant activities in Lebanon and Gaza. This is precisely why Washington has intensified its campaign against Venezuelan drug-smuggling corridors in the Caribbean. Removing President Nicolás Maduro, Tehran’s most important foothold in the Western Hemisphere, would deal a major blow to Iran’s financial architecture and significantly weaken its proxy military presence across the region.

Egypt, Jordan, and Lebanon: States on the Front Line

Egypt declared the MB a terrorist organization in 2013 and dismantled much of its infrastructure, arguing that MB political structures and Hamas’s militant wing are inseparable, a view now echoed in U.S. policy.

Jordan dissolved its Brotherhood chapter in 2020 and, in April 2025, banned all MB activities and seized assets. Jordanian intelligence has documented MB–Hamas coordination in the West Bank financed in part by Iran.

Lebanon is still the operational hub. Hezbollah functions as Tehran’s headquarters for weapons transfers, training, and joint planning. Hamas’s October 7 attack was green lit in Beirut meetings involving IRGC, Hezbollah, and Hamas commanders. Lebanon’s MB branch, al-Jamaa al-Islamiya, has moved closer to Hezbollah, coordinating militarily in the south.

It stays uncertain how Türkiye, a NATO member, and Qatar, a close U.S. ally, will respond to President Trump’s November 2025 directive targeting the Muslim Brotherhood. Both Ankara and Doha have historically provided financial, political, and media support to Al‑Ikhwan (MB) across multiple arenas, sustaining its influence well beyond national borders. Türkiye has offered the Brotherhood safe haven and platforms for its leadership, while Qatar has bankrolled Hamas and Brotherhood‑linked charities under the guise of humanitarian aid. This dual patronage complicates Washington’s effort to isolate MB chapters in Lebanon, Jordan, and Egypt, as any U.S. designation will inevitably test relations with two states that are still strategically important to American defense and energy policy. The question is whether Türkiye and Qatar will recalibrate their support considering Trump’s directive, or double down, risking deeper friction with Washington and its regional partners.

Conclusion

Iran’s financing has transformed disparate militant groups into a unified threat network. October 7 was not an isolated event but the opening salvo of an Iranian-designed escalation spanning Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, and beyond.

Trump’s 2025 directive marks a turning point: the Muslim Brotherhood is treated as part of this axis, not a separate political actor. Regional partners like Egypt and Jordan reinforce this view, underscoring that the Brotherhood’s role is inseparable from Iran’s proxy strategy.

To prevent the next October 7, and to preserve the Abraham Accord in the Middle East, Washington and its allies must choke off Iran’s financial pipelines-oil revenues, crypto flows, and charitable fronts. Failure to act decisively will leave the region exposed to further escalation, with consequences that will reverberate globally.

* President of Shields of United Lebanon (SOUL)

Former Legislative Assistant, U.S. Congress (Capitol Hill); Lecturer & Strategic Analyst

#Iran #Hezbollah #Hamas #MuslimBrotherhood #IranProxyWar #TerrorFinance #HybridWarfare #Beirut #Lebanon #Jordan #Egypt #USNationalSecurity

#usa #PresidentTrump

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