In a recent Jordanian TV interview, Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood leader Hamza Mansour refused to condemn ISIS as a terrorist organization. Asked repeatedly by the interviewer if ISIS was terrorist, Mansour, leader of the Islamic Action Front, the political branch of the Muslim Brotherhood movement in Jordan, evaded the question, until the interviewer finally left it up to the viewers to draw their own conclusions.
Following is an excerpt from the interview, which aired on JoSat TV on February 2, 2015.
Interviewer: Is ISIS a terrorist organization?
Hamza Mansour: Ahhhh… There are many terrorists.
Interviewer: Is ISIS a terrorist organization?
Hamza Mansour: There are many terrorists.
Interviewer: My question is clear, Sheik Hamza. Is ISIS a terrorist organization or not?
Hamza Mansour: Let me answer in my own words. We condemn every terrorist group, government, or regime.
Interviewer: Is ISIS a terrorist organization?
Hamza Mansour: There are terrorists of every sort – Sunnis, Shiites, Muslims, Christians, Jews…
Interviewer: The Islamic State organization, sir – do you consider it to be terrorist?
Hamza Mansour: There is no definition of terrorism today. Anybody who says a couple of words is automatically considered a terrorist. We condemn terrorism in all its shapes and sizes.
Interviewer: And ISIS?
Hamza Mansour: Let me tell you….
Interviewer: I'm asking a clear question. I insist on getting an answer. This is a yes/no question.
Hamza Mansour: I condemn terrorism in all forms. Are you giving me the third degree?
Interviewer: No, it's not an interrogation. I'm just asking: Is ISIS terrorist?
Hamza Mansour: I'm telling you that I condemn all terrorists. Fine, let the viewers understand your answer any way they want.
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