A study prepared by the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and titled "Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood and Iran" warns about the relations between Iran (Shiites) and Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood [MB] (Sunnis), saying that, due to such relations, Iranian influence will "grow considerably in the Arab world, giving Tehran a significant say among Arab radicals and, undoubtedly, producing dangerous developments for U.S. interests in the region." The study mentions that, although a complete rapprochement between Sunnis and Shiites is impossible, Shiite Islam is probably accepted among Egyptian Sunnis while it is not in most Arab countries. The study also says that Iran's criticism of Egypt's role, especially concerning the war in Gaza, is also likely to resonate with Egyptian radicals. "Egypt has long been suspicious of the connection between the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood and Iran, based in large part on Iran's longstanding strong ties to Hamas -- an offshoot of the Brotherhood. The recent conflict in Gaza is likely to further arouse Cairo's suspicions. During the fighting, Iran was highly vocal in their support of Hamas, blasting the Egyptian government for its inaction. "Iran has also forged stronger working relations with other Sunni extremists… Saudi authorities allege that the leader of 'al-Qaeda in the Persian Gulf,' Abdullah al-Qaraqi, lives and moves freely in Iran, along with more than a hundred Saudis working for him." The study then focuses on the history of the relations between the MB and Tehran. It says that "the Brotherhood has had a major impact on Islamic revivalism in Iran", adding there was cooperation between the group's main personalities and Shiite fundamentalists in Tehran. The study goes on to say: "In 1954, at the invitation of Sayyed Qutb, then secretary of the Islamic summit and main intellectual of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, Navvad Safavi traveled to Jordan and Egypt to meet its leaders. Under their influence, he became more attracted to the Palestinian cause. Before that time, there were few references to the Palestinian problem in Iranian society among clerics or lay (leftist) intellectuals and activists. "Before Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution, Khamenei translated two books by Sayyed Qutb, Al-Mustaqbal li hadha al-Din (The Future of this Religion) and Al-Islam wa Mushkelat al-Hadharah (Islam and the Problems of Civilization)." Regarding the Islamic Revolution in the MB's eyes, the study says: "Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood at first cautiously welcomed the Ayatollah Khomeini-led Islamic revolution, which may have given the Brotherhood confidence that they too would be able to overthrow their country's secular regime. But after an Islamic radical assassinated Egyptian president Anwar al-Sadat in 1981, the Brotherhood was forced to take a cautious attitude toward the Islamic Republic, at least in public. "In January 1982, Umar Telmesani, then leader of the Brotherhood, told the Egyptian weekly magazine al-Msuwwar, 'We supported him [Khomeini] politically, because an oppressed people had managed to get rid of an oppressive ruler and to regain their freedom, but from the doctrinal point of view, Sunnism is one thing and Shiism is another.' "In 1985, Telmesani wrote in the Egyptian magazine al-Dawa that 'the contact between Muslim Brotherhood and [Iranian clerics] was not done in order to make Shiites convert to Sunni Islam, the main purpose was to comply with Islam's mission to converge the Islamic sects as much as possible'. "There were points where the Brotherhood and Iran cooperated more openly. In 1988, for example, at the conclusion of the Iran-Iraq war, at the request of Muslim Brotherhood leader Shaikh Muhammad Ghazzali, the Iranians agreed to unilaterally release the Egyptian prisoners of war who had fought alongside the Iraqi army against Iran. "More recently, on January 28, Muhammad Mahdi Akef, the current leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, said in an interview with Mehr News Agency: 'The Muslim Brotherhood supports the ideas and thoughts of the founder of Islamic Republic.' He added '[Ayatollah] Khomeini's idea, especially with regard to the Palestinian issue, is the continuation of the Muslim Brotherhood's attitude toward fighting occupation.' "While a breakthrough in relations between the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood and Tehran remains unlikely, the consequences for the United States of such a union would be very damaging. Iran remains focused on expanding its influence in the Persian Gulf and beyond, and connections to the strongest opposition party in the Middle East would be a great leap forward" the study concludes. Finally, the study calls on the US administration to pay attention to this issue.
