Jordan Arrests Brotherhood Deputy for Criticizing UAE

Jordan has arrested the deputy leader of the country's Muslim Brotherhood after he criticized the United Arab Emirates for classifying the movement as a "terrorist organization", a judicial source said Friday.

Zaki Bani Rsheid was summoned late Thursday for questioning by the state security prosecutor who later ordered his detention for 15 days, which could be extended.

He was accused of "acts that could harm Jordan's relations with a brotherly state" after he criticized the UAE for blacklisting 80 Islamist groups as "terrorist organizations".

The list, published last week, is similar to one issued by Saudi Arabia in March. It blacklists several groups including Al-Qaida, the Islamic State group, the Muslim Brotherhood and Yemen's Shiite Huthi militia.

Bani Rsheid criticized the move, calling the UAE "the prime godfather of terrorism".

"The Emirates are playing the role of American police in the region... serving Zionist interests," he said on his Facebook page.

Allies Jordan and the UAE are partners in the U.S.-led campaign against jihadists, and both countries have carried out air strikes on IS targets in Syria as part of an international coalition.

The Muslim Brotherhood was formed in Egypt in 1928, and branches of the group appeared across the region over the years.

It is the main opposition force in Jordan and has wide grassroots support.

In September, Jordan arrested senior Brotherhood member Mohamed Said Bakr on charges of incitement against the authorities.

Bakr, a member of the group's consultative council, was detained after criticizing the government at a public event, and accusing it of being "subject to the United States".