ABSTRACT
The main difference between the category of Muslim NGOs analyzed in this chapter and the Islamist ones is that the former have apparently few (if any) links with the founders and present members of the Islamist movement. Therefore, they cannot be considered part of any direct effort to implement the programs or strategies of an expressly political movement, such as The Muslim Brotherhood, which seeks the comprehensive Islamization of society. It has to be kept in mind that, in a strictly formal and technical sense, no recognized voluntary welfare association in Jordan, not even the ICCS, is affiliated to The Muslim Brotherhood or, for that matter, to any other political or religious movement. Looking at the overlap in membership and/or leadership between such associations and the Islamist movement and its social networks is the only way to find evidence of these links. Here, individual figures carry importance, not explicitly formulated official structures. In this regard, Waleed Hammad, researcher at the Al-Urdun Al-Jadid Research Center, observes:
Even when these Islamic movements and groups exercise actual influence over these charitable, social and voluntary societies, the latter are still independent from the Islamic groups because they enjoy an independent legal entity. In fact, the degree of influence these Islamic groups can exercise on the societies depends on the personal role of the leaders of these Islamic groups in running these societies. 1
