Florida took an aggressive new stance on Monday as Governor Ron DeSantis declared that the Muslim Brotherhood and the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) will now be treated by the state as foreign terrorist organizations. Announcing the decision, DeSantis stated, “Florida agencies are hereby directed to undertake all lawful measures to prevent unlawful activities by these organizations, including denying privileges or resources to anyone providing material support.”
The governor’s announcement comes just after Texas executed a similar move. Governor Greg Abbott recently categorized both the Muslim Brotherhood and CAIR as foreign terrorist organizations as well as transnational criminal organizations, a step that carries sweeping enforcement implications and blocks the groups from acquiring land anywhere in Texas.
These measures arrive amid a broader national push led by President Donald Trump, who two weeks ago signed an executive order kickstarting a formal federal review of various Muslim Brotherhood branches. His executive action mandates the State Department and the Treasury to present, within 45 days, a comprehensive determination of which specific entities meet the legal qualifications to be designated as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) or Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGTs).
Should federal authorities approve such listings, the consequences would be immediate and far-reaching, including sanctions, frozen assets, and strict cuts to international funding streams, all of which would dramatically impede the organizations’ activities worldwide.
The Muslim Brotherhood has pushed back hard against the unfolding federal process, dismissing the president’s initiative as “detached from reality” and insisting that Trump’s claims of terrorist involvement are “unsupported by evidence.”
{Matzav.com}
