AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has announced that it is preparing a legal complaint against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, after he labeled the civil rights organization a “foreign terrorist group” in an executive order.
CAIR’s Florida interim director, Heba Rahim, told Al Jazeera that the governor’s decision will not have an immediate operational impact on CAIR’s activities, but warned that it could intensify Islamophobia in Florida and across the United States.
DeSantis stated on Monday that state agencies must act against any individual or entity that CAIR provides with material support. Critics, however, describe the move as purely symbolic, noting that the authority to designate “foreign terrorist organizations” lies solely with the federal government. CAIR is a domestic organization with dozens of offices and hundreds of American members and staff, and cannot legally be classified as a “foreign group.”
The order mirrors a similar action taken last month by Texas’s Republican governor and comes amid a nationwide surge in Islamophobic sentiment. Rahim stressed that CAIR will continue defending civil liberties and the rights of American Muslims.
She accused DeSantis of pursuing “Israel-centric policies,” recalling that he held his first cabinet meeting in 2019 in Israel. Rahim also criticized his lack of concern for Palestinian-American residents of Florida who have faced harm, including the killing of Saifullah Muslet and the prolonged detention of a teenager named Mohammed Ibrahim.
The governor has said he welcomes CAIR’s lawsuit, claiming it will enable the state to gain “access to the organization’s financial records.” Critics counter that, if genuine suspicion of criminal activity existed, state authorities could have sought a court order without waiting for litigation. Rahim maintained that CAIR has no fear of transparency and “will respond in court.”
Civil rights advocates say the targeting of CAIR is part of a broader campaign to portray Muslims as a security threat, from attempts by some right-wing legislators to pass anti-Sharia laws to anti-Muslim rallies in the city of Dearborn. Ahmad Bedier, a Muslim activist in Florida, described the actions as “political theater disguised as security policy,” aimed at distracting public attention from developments in Gaza.
The federal government has not yet commented on DeSantis’s action, and the U.S. State Department did not respond to Al Jazeera’s request for clarification. Rahim urged the U.S. president to stand with CAIR against the Florida governor’s measure.
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