America Exposed to 'Stealth Jihad' Threat, Security Report Warns

America is "under attack" by a non-violent "stealth jihad," a panel of national security analysts warned in a new report that claimed fundamentalists are trying to bring Islamic law known as "Shariah" to the United States.

The report, sponsored by the Center for Security Policy and touted by a handful of conservative lawmakers on Capitol Hill Wednesday, said that the violent threat posed by Al Qaeda and other terror groups is outmatched by the threat from jihadists allegedly trying to change American society from within.

"This form of warfare includes multi-layered cultural subversion, the co-opting of senior leaders, influence operations and propaganda and other means of insinuating Shariah into Western societies," the study said.

The report cited the Muslim Brotherhood as the most influential organization trying to achieve that goal, but expressed concern more about America's vulnerability than any marquee successes by the so-called "stealth" jihadists.

"Just as we cannot say all Muslims hold a certain view based on the actions of a radical fringe ... it would be unwise to discount the malicious intentions of those that wish to subvert American law," Rep. Trent Franks, R-Ariz., said at a press conference Wednesday.

The study urged government to be more vigilant by threatening Shariah-promoting imams with investigation and monitoring the contents of school textbooks.

The report cited as warning signs the deadly Fort Hood shooting as well as a recent case where a New Jersey judge rejected a woman's request for a restraining order against her husband whom she claimed sexually abused her. In the New Jersey case, the judge ruled that the husband acted according to his Muslim beliefs; the decision was overturned in July by New Jersey's Appellate Court.

"Still, the fact that such a reversal was necessary is instructive," the Shariah report said.