Trump administration to cancel asylum interviews for Muslim Brotherhood members ahead of deportations

A US Department of Homeland Security source told The New Arab that the agency's Citizenship and Immigration Services has begun reviewing asylum cases filed by individuals affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood.

Interviews for applicants claiming persecution based on membership in the group are set to be cancelled, with their cases referred directly to immigration judges for likely denial and deportation.

The administration is acting under an executive order issued by former President Donald Trump in November 2025 and subsequent January 2026 directives imposing sanctions on three branches of the Muslim Brotherhood in Lebanon, Egypt, and Jordan.

At the request of the Trump administration, the US State Department designated the Lebanese branch a "foreign terrorist organisation", the most severe classification, while the Treasury Department listed the Egyptian and Jordanian branches as "terrorist organisations".

Reviewing asylum cases

According to the source, the Trump administration is scrutinising the reasons for asylum claims as part of its review, referring many cases to immigration courts rather than conducting interviews.

Any applicant indicating membership in the Muslim Brotherhood is referred directly to an immigration judge, as the administration classifies the group as designated, effectively compelling judges to deny these cases.

Under US immigration law, asylum may be sought for various reasons, including persecution based on race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group.

Since 2014, large numbers of Egyptians have applied for asylum, citing political persecution linked to Muslim Brotherhood affiliation. The administration reviewed cases filed in 2016 due to a backlog of more than three million pending applications accumulated over several years.

The source added that if individuals face convictions in their home countries for Muslim Brotherhood membership, the administration reviewing their security status will use these convictions as grounds for denial.

In the past, such convictions were treated as evidence of political persecution.

The source declined to specify the status of those previously granted asylum, whether they obtained permanent residency or not, but said, "Each case will be examined on its own merits."

Political persecution?

This marks a first-time development for applicants claiming asylum based on political persecution for Muslim Brotherhood membership.

Typically, the process involves an interview with immigration officials, followed by a decision to grant or deny asylum. Applicants may appeal to immigration judges employed by the Department of Homeland Security and, if denied, may seek federal court review.

The new procedure will bypass interviews, leaving decisions largely to immigration judges, with deportations carried out based on their rulings.

The administration has applied this approach in recent months for other categories of cases.

In mid-August 2025, the Department of Homeland Security issued guidance allowing office directors to treat the Muslim Brotherhood as a "terrorist organisation" during asylum interviews.

Following the Trump administration's designations of the three branches, it has become clear that applicants from Egypt, Jordan, and Lebanon citing affiliation with the group are unlikely to be approved.

Article translated from Arabic by Afrah Almatwari. To read the original, click here.