The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has suspended its activities in Florida after the state's designation of the organization as a domestic terrorist group took effect, JNS reported Thursday.
The suspension followed a ruling by Chief US District Judge Allen Winsor of the Northern District of Florida, who declined Wednesday to temporarily block the designation while CAIR challenges it in federal court.
“We have suspended our operations in Florida because of Gov. DeSantis and other state officials’ baseless and unconstitutional enforcement of the state’s unprecedented new ‘domestic terrorist organization’ laws against us," CAIR-Florida announced on its website, displaying the statement against a black background.
In his November 4 order, Winsor granted CAIR limited protection, preventing the state from prosecuting the organization, its employees, or third parties providing legal services under Florida's material-support law. The injunction is conditional on the posting of a $1,000 bond.
The judge emphasized that his decision did not address whether CAIR was a terrorist organization. Rather, he concluded that the group had failed to establish sufficient legal grounds for suspending the designation while litigation continued.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis welcomed the development. Florida is holding CAIR accountable," he stated.
DeSantis and the Florida Cabinet voted on September 29 to classify CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood as domestic terrorist organizations, while designating more than 90 additional groups as foreign terrorist organizations. Florida officials accused CAIR of maintaining connections to the Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorist organizations.
The designations were published in the Florida Administrative Register on October 6 and became effective 30 days later.
Under Florida law, designated organizations face restrictions on receiving public funds and government contracts. Public institutions are also prohibited from using their resources to support or promote such groups, while individuals who knowingly provide material support may face criminal prosecution. The legislation also allows for the possible dissolution of designated organizations.
The latest action followed legislation signed by DeSantis earlier this year granting Florida expanded authority to designate terrorist organizations.
In December, DeSantis had attempted to classify CAIR through an executive order, but a federal judge blocked the measure in March, ruling that the governor lacked the authority to impose the designation and its consequences unilaterally.
The Florida initiative followed a similar move by Texas Governor Greg Abbott, who designated CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood as foreign terrorist organizations and transnational criminal organizations. The Texas designation authorized increased enforcement measures and prohibited the groups and their affiliates from acquiring land in the state.
At the federal level, President Donald Trump previously signed an executive order initiating the process of designating certain Muslim Brotherhood branches as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) and Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGTs).
In January, the United States formally designated the Egyptian, Jordanian, and Lebanese branches of the Muslim Brotherhood as specially designated global terrorists, citing their support for Hamas.