Florida governor designates Muslim rights group as terrorist organization

Dec 9 (Reuters) - Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has signed ​an executive order designating one ​of the country’s most prominent Muslim civil rights groups, ⁠the Council on American-Islamic Relations, as a “foreign terrorist organization,” becoming the second high-profile Republican governor to do so ​in recent weeks.

Last month, Texas Governor Greg ‍Abbott took a similar step ​against CAIR, which has challenged the move in federal court as an unconstitutional effort to punish the organization simply because of its views. CAIR was ⁠expected to announce a separate lawsuit against Florida later on Tuesday.

The Florida order alleged that CAIR has ties to Hamas, the militant Palestinian group that attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing approximately 1,200 people. Israel’s response on Hamas-governed Gaza has killed more than 70,000 people, ​according to the ⁠Gazan health ministry, and left much ⁠of the enclave in ruins.

CAIR has denied any ties to Hamas. In a joint statement on Monday, CAIR and its Florida chapter called DeSantis’ order “unconstitutional and defamatory.”

As with ‌Abbott’s order, DeSantis’ order also named ​the Muslim Brotherhood, founded in Egypt, as a foreign terrorist organization.

The U.S. government has not designated CAIR or the Muslim Brotherhood as foreign terrorist ‍organizations, but President Donald Trump last month began the process of doing so for certain Muslim Brotherhood chapters, ‌such as those in Lebanon, Egypt and Jordan.

The ‌Florida order instructs agencies to take action to prevent CAIR from receiving any state contracts, employment or funding.

CAIR was founded in 1994 and has chapters in nearly two dozen ⁠U.S. states.

(Reporting by Joseph Ax; Editing by Frank McGurty and Bill Berkrot)