Texas declares Muslim Brotherhood, CAIR to be terrorist organizations

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Tuesday designated the Muslim Brotherhood a foreign terrorist and transnational criminal organization. He applied the same designations to The Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR, an advocacy group Abbott characterized as a subsidiary of the Muslim Brotherhood, though CAIR insists it is an independent organization. The move blocked both groups from purchasing Texas land, and authorized the state attorney general to sue to shut them down, he said.

What was Abbott’s basis for the decision? His proclamation cited evidence from the FBI, federal court decisions, and quotes in support of terrorism from CAIR and Muslim Brotherhood leaders. The FBI found that CAIR was a front group for the Hamas terrorist organization, he said. The State Department also classifies several branches of the Muslim Brotherhood as terrorists, he said.

Abbott also cited a new state law he signed in June, which bans residential developments from creating certain exclusionary compounds of residents—including all-Muslim settlements. That law was passed after Texas launched a large-scale investigation into an Islamic center’s plans to build a community for thousands of Muslims. The community developers recently changed its name from EPIC City to The Meadow as part of a rebrand they said emphasized the inclusive nature of the neighborhood, which will center around a mosque and faith-based school, according to The Dallas Morning News.

How did the organizations respond to the new designations? CAIR threatened to sue Abbott for what it characterized as a publicity stunt smearing a civil rights organization. Abbott didn’t have the authority to declare an American institution a terrorist group, it said. CAIR wasn’t an offshoot of any foreign organization, it said.

Dig deeper: Read Lauren Canterberry’s report on Texas’ investigation into the Muslim-centric settlement.