The Texas government, led by Republican Greg Abbott, classified this Tuesday (18) the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) as an international terrorist organization, a decision that includes a ban on the purchase of land in the State and authorizes legal action to shut down the entity’s operations.
According to information from the newspaper The New York Timesthe measure was announced as part of a formal statement in which the Texan government also accused CAIR of maintaining direct links with the terrorist group Hamas. According to the newspaper, CAIR denied any connection and stated that the accusation “has no basis in fact or in law”.
According to the official note released by the governor’s office, Abbott stated that both CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood seek to “forcibly impose Islamic law and establish ‘domination of the world’ by Islam.” In the statement, the governor also said that these groups had “supported terrorism around the world” and acted to “subvert American laws”.
According to the New York Times This is the first time a U.S. state government has designated CAIR as a terrorist organization. The entity, founded three decades ago in Washington, is one of the main Islamic organizations in the country and has been the target of increased criticism since the Hamas terrorist attacks against Israel on October 7, 2023.
CAIR classified the measure as an “advertising trick disguised as a classification”, stating that the government text included “conspiracy theories” and “invented quotes”. Still according to the Timesthe group accused Abbott of promoting “discrimination against Muslims.”
