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Greg Abbott announces ban on Sharia law and compounds in Texas after viral protest video.
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Texas Governor orders residents to report any attempt to impose Sharia compliance to authorities.
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Civil rights concerns mount as Muslim-planned community faces investigations and opposition.
Texas Governor, Greg Abbott has formally declared a ban on Sharia law and so-called Sharia compounds.
Mr Abbott made the announcement in a post on X, responding to a viral video of Islamic clerics and their supporters demanding that shopkeepers stop selling alcohol, pork, and lottery tickets in compliance with Sharia rules.
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He said he had signed laws outlawing Sharia law in the state, describing the protesters as “fools”.
The governor urged residents to report any individual or group attempting to enforce Sharia compliance to local law enforcement or the Texas Department of Public Safety.
His statement was reinforced by the governor’s press office, which declared that any legal system that undermines human rights is banned in Texas.
While some users said the U.S. Constitution already guarantees protection from the imposition of religious law, others argued that Sharia influence is evident in Texas courts, schools, and public facilities.
The controversy comes amid ongoing resistance to “EPIC City”, a proposed Muslim-planned community near Josephine, north of Dallas.
The project, linked to the East Plano Islamic Centre, aims to build 1,000 homes, a mosque, a school, shops, apartments, and a community college on 400 acres.
Abbott had previously declared that the development “would never see the light of day.”
Federal authorities are already reviewing the project. In May, the U.S. Department of Justice opened a civil rights investigation into whether opposition to the Muslim-centred community constitutes religious discrimination.
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Senator John Cornyn and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton had earlier raised concerns about the development.
Supporters of the project insist they are being unfairly targeted and bullied because of their faith.
