Cairo , Egypt ( CNN ) -- Egypt 's banned Muslim Brotherhood will apply to become a political party , it announced Tuesday . The Brotherhood `` envisions the establishment of a democratic , civil state that draws on universal measures of freedom and justice , with central Islamic values serving all Egyptians regardless of colour , creed , political trend or religion , '' it said in the statement . Although officially illegal , the Muslim Brotherhood is regarded as one of the most organized groups in Egypt . It has said it does not plan to run a candidate for president when elections are held to replace Hosni Mubarak , who resigned on Friday . Although officially illegal , the Muslim Brotherhood is regarded as one of the most organized groups in Egypt . Experts estimate the group has the support of anywhere from 10 % to 30 % of the population . It has said it does not plan to run a candidate for president when elections are held to replace Hosni Mubarak , who resigned on Friday . The group has sparked great controversy in the United States , where some see it as a non-violent , Islamic social welfare organization supportive of a democratic process while others call it a radical extremist group hellbent on creating a theocracy in Egypt . President Barack Obama recently downplayed the prospect of the Muslim Brotherhood playing a major role in Egypt , saying it is just one faction in Egypt that does n't have majority support . `` There are a whole bunch of secular folks in Egypt , there are a whole bunch of educators and civil society in Egypt that want to come to the fore as well , '' the president said in an interview with Fox News . `` And it 's important for us not to say that our only two options are either the Muslim Brotherhood or a suppressed Egyptian people . '' Others , however , distrust the Brotherhood 's ultimate intentions . `` They are a powerful force at present , but my fear is that Islamist groups outside Egypt , seeing the opportunity in the current chaos , will flood them with support if they back an extremist view , '' said CNN national security contributor Frances Fragos Townsend , who was President George W. Bush 's counterterrorism advisor . And former CIA Director Mike Hayden said the Muslim Brotherhood , as the best organized opposition group in Egypt , could `` enjoy a disproportionate power in shaping the new government . The question is : Will it become more radical ? '' Still , a current U.S. official characterized the Muslim Brotherhood as being `` not as extreme as al Qaeda is . '' `` It 's an organization that supports a civil state which is based in large part on Islamic law , '' said the official . `` But they do tend to eschew violence and work within the political process . '' The official cautioned about ambiguity when it comes to Egypt . `` There are lots of unknowns now with Egypt , '' said the official . `` You really ca n't make a call on anything , whether Mubarak is going or staying or how the Muslim Brotherhood figures into the political process . And in a recent article in the Daily Beast , former CIA analyst Bruce Riedel wrote that Americans should not fear the group . `` They should not be afraid of the Muslim Brotherhood . Living with it wo n't be easy , but it should not be seen as inevitably our enemy , '' said Riedel . The Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood was founded in 1928 to oppose British control of Egypt with Its goal the creation of an independent Islamic state . Although it allegedly engaged in assassination and other violence against the British and supported the coup that brought Gamal Abdel Nasser to power in 1952 , the Brotherhood has been illegal since 1954 , when it was convicted of attempting to assassinated Nasser , charges the group denied . Nasser ruthlessly suppressed the group , and his successors , Anwar Sadat and Hosni Mubarak , continued the repression . The Brotherhood subsequently renounced violence , is engaged in providing social services to the populace , opposes the peace treaty with Israel and supports democratic elections . On its English language website , the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood calls for establishing an Islamic state in accordance with the provision of Islamic Sharia law . Ed Husain , a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations , said the Muslim Brotherhood `` ought to be a welcomed force within Egyptian politics '' if it accepts full rights for women and for religious minorities . But his colleague at the council , Isobel Coleman , said the group has n't done that , pointing to statements by the Brotherhood that neither a woman nor a non-Muslim could ever lead Egypt . But Republican Congresswoman Sue Myrick of North Carolina worried that the government did not see the danger . `` I 'm very concerned that they 're using the peaceful protests in Egypt for a power grab and that we in the government does n't seem -- we do n't seem to grasp that threat in the way it concerns me , '' she said at a congressional hearing last week . `` The Brotherhood is n't a danger just because they 're terrorists , but because they push an extremist ideology that causes others to commit acts of terrorism . '' ' The 83-year-old organization has never been placed on the U.S. State Department 's list of terrorist organizations and officially renounced violence in the 1970s . The organization was a minor player in the demonstrations that toppled Mubarak . But the U.S. chief intelligence officer raised a stir when he referred to the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood as a `` largely secular '' organization in response to a question from Myrick at the hearing . `` The term 'Muslim Brotherhood ' is an umbrella term for a variety of movements , in the case of Egypt , a very heterogeneous group , largely secular , which has eschewed violence and has decried Al Qaeda as a perversion of Islam , '' said James Clapper , the director of national intelligence . `` They have pursued social ends , a betterment of the political order in Egypt . '' Clapper 's office later clarified the director 's comments . `` In Egypt the Muslim Brotherhood makes efforts to work through a political system that has been , under Mubarak 's rule , one that is largely secular in its orientation -- ( Clapper ) is well aware that the Muslim Brotherhood is not a secular organization . '' CNN 's Pam Benson contributed to this report .
NEW : U.S. officials are divided over the 83-year-old organization . NEW : Group was banned in 1954 after it was convicted of trying to assassinate Nasser . TL;DR The group is accused of being behind a series of bombings and assassinations that killed hundreds of people during its reign from 1952 until 1970. It says it does not plan to run a candidate for president .