Texas governor slammed after signing laws that ban 'sharia law'

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has been slammed after announcing he had signed laws that ban "Sharia Law and Sharia compounds" in Texas, after a video went viral of an imam calling on Muslim-owned businesses to stop selling pork, lottery tickets or alcohol.

Writing on X, Governor Abbott urged users to report anyone, including the imam, attempting to "impose Sharia compliance".

"We will ensure that we have the laws and law enforcement in place to prevent attempts to build such discriminatory compounds in the state of Texas," Abbott's office said in a statement.

The move has been slammed by rights groups, including the Texas chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Texas), who accused Abbott of spreading fear, encouraging discrimination and painting ordinary Muslim Texans as potential criminals for simply practising their faith.

"Governor Abbott's post is reckless, discriminatory, and divorced from reality," CAIR-Texas said in a statement.

"This approach sets a dangerous precedent, suggesting the government can discriminate against religious minorities based on popular misconceptions or political expediency."

The chapter also added that the governor's need to ban "Sharia compounds" is based on conspiracy theories, adding that there is no evidence of any attempt to impose a separate legal system in Texas.

Abbot also mentioned a Muslim-led real estate project, EPIC City housing development, which was subjected to investigations described as "politically motivated".

The development is aimed at building 1,000 homes, a faith-based school, a mosque, a community college,  and shops 30 miles north of Dallas.

Abbott's office accused the project of trying "to use religion as a form of segregation", which EPIC City asserts the project complies with Texan law.

A viral video showed Imam F. Qasim ibn Ali Khan of Masjid At-Tawhid confronting a shop employee for selling products that are forbidden in Islam, sparking a right-wing backlash and calls for a ban on "Sharia Law" in the state.