Egyptian Islamist group says it will take UK government to court if it tries to restrict its activities

Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood has hit back against Downing Street's investigation into whether it is on a path towards violent extremism and warned it will take the British government to court if it tries to restrict its activities in the UK.

The Brotherhood, whose leader Mohamed Morsi won the 2012 presidential election in Egypt but was deposed in a military coup last year, has appointed the former director of public prosecutions, Lord Macdonald, to help make its case. It said in a statement that it is a peaceful and lawful organisation that "does not engage in or promote acts of violence to achieve its aims" and it "intends to openly engage with the British government's review and will make representations to assist". But it threatened court action against "any improper attempt to restrict its activity".

The statement came 24 hours after David Cameron announced the review, saying: "We want to challenge the extremist narrative that some Islamist organisations have put out."

It also questioned whether the process would be fair after Cameron appointed to lead the review Sir John Jenkins, the British ambassador to Saudi Arabia, a country which has banned the Brotherhood as a terror group and accused it of carrying out bombings.

"It is important that the British government does not bend to pressure from foreign governments who are concerned about their own people's quest for democracy," the Brotherhood said in a statement through its UK lawyers ITN Solicitors. "It is hard to see how Sir John Jenkins will be able to conduct an independent internal review and carry his brief as ambassador to a non-democratic regime that is openly in political opposition to the Muslim Brotherhood."

Middle East analysts have also said that Jenkins's appointment raises questions about the role of the Saudis in influencing Cameron's calculations and have pointed out that the governments of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have been placing pressure on any government in the region and internationally that gives any space to the Brotherhood.

Downing Street strongly denied Jenkins's appointment indicated any bias. "We are approaching this with an open mind and we are not being driven by the Saudis or the Egyptians," said a No 10 source. The review is due to be complete by July and will reflect contributions from embassies in Riyadh, Cairo, Doha, Abu Dhabi, Washington and across European capitals as well as from the security services.

"We propose to make submissions to the inquiry about the Muslim Brotherhood," Macdonald said on Wednesday night. "The view my clients take is they don't think they have anything to fear from it. They were associated with an elected government that was overthrown in a military coup and that is the context in which this inquiry is taking place."

The Brotherhood said it welcomed the opportunity to "bring a better understanding about the aims and methods of the Muslim Brotherhood and how it intends to return Egypt to a democratic and civil society".

It also urged the UK government to consider the "very well documented and serious human rights abuses being conducted by the military regime in Egypt", and warned the UK government that it should not allow the review "to be seen as an endorsement of the criminal acts which continue to be perpetrated against the people of Egypt".