The Arab Spring Ruse: How the Muslim Brotherhood Duped Washington in Libya and Syria

In 2011, the Middle East was rocked by a cataclysmic series of demonstrations and revolts against long-time autocratic leaders in several countries in the region. Some, such as Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak, were perceived as relatively friendly to the United States, while others, such as Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi and Syria’s Basha al-Assad, were long-time U.S. opponents.

In 2003, following 9/11, Gaddafi sought reconciliation with the West and publicly renounced support for terrorist activity and his quest for weapons of mass destruction. This began a short-lived rapprochement, a time of outward reconciliation between Libya and the West that lasted until the Libyan Revolution in February 2011.

Uprisings spread across the Middle East and North Africa like wildfire during the spring of 2011. Starting on February 17, 2011 uprisings began in Libya against the Gaddafi regime in Benghazi, spurred by fighters linked to the Muslim Brotherhood and Al-Qaeda.

Engagement with the Muslim Brotherhood failed to liberalize the organization. Lack of sobriety on the part of the Obama administration and Western European leaders—plus the Brotherhood-supporting states of Turkey and Qatar—may have contributed to the mushrooming of Islamist terrorist violence on a global scale during Obama’s time as president.