American civil rights groups have condemned the appointment of a new deputy national security advisor who served on the board of an anti-Muslim group for nearly a decade.
US President Donald Trump appointed Charles M Kupperman last week to assist National Security Advisor John Bolton, saying in a press release that Kupperman "brings to the role more than four decades of national security policy and programme experience".
Kupperman served on the board of directors for the Center for Security Policy (CSP) between 2001 and 2010, according to tax records.
The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), an Alabama-based hate monitor, designates the CSP as an anti-Muslim hate group, pointing to the group's promotion of conspiracy theories claiming that Muslims have infiltrated the US government and seek to establish Islamic law in the country.
The Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) has called on the Trump administration to revoke Kupperman's appointment.
"Once again this is an example of Trump elevating foxes into the hen house, where Islamophobes are well placed to direct our nation's national security priorities," Robert McCaw, director of CAIR's government affairs department, told Al Jazeera.
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