AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): In recent days, Texas Republicans have intensified political attacks against Islam, raising unproven allegations that accuse the state’s Muslim community of financing terrorism and seeking to impose Islamic Shariah.
On Friday, Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick listed “preventing the implementation of Shariah in Texas” among the top priorities of the state Senate for the 2027 legislative session, stressing that only state and federal laws are valid in Texas. The stance has persisted despite legal experts acknowledging that no credible or actual threat exists.
Within this context, Patrick called for a review of the “Epic City” project linked to the East Plano Islamic Center, a development that the U.S. Department of Justice had previously investigated for a year before closing the case without finding any civil rights violations.
At the same time, Texas Governor Greg Abbott, in a letter to Attorney General Ken Paxton, urged the revocation of the nonprofit status of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and sought to restrict its activities. The U.S. federal government does not designate CAIR as a terrorist organization. CAIR has rejected any links to terrorism and says it is committed to defending the civil rights of Muslims.
Ahmed Mitchell, CAIR’s national deputy director, described the allegations as “recycled conspiracy theories,” saying it is illogical to suggest that a minority population could overhaul a state’s judicial system. He emphasized that the organization has publicly condemned terrorism for decades.
The rhetoric has intensified alongside electoral competition in Texas, with several Republican candidates, including John Cornyn and Aaron Reitz, amplifying claims of an “Islamic invasion” and attributing violent incidents to Muslim organizations, allegations for which no independent evidence has been presented.
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