Sharia
is a legal code based on the Koran and other Islamic scriptures.
Mr
Gingrich's comments follow an attack in the French city of Nice, which has
killed at least 84 people.
His
comments echo the sentiment held by likely Republican presidential nominee
Donald Trump, who has said Muslims should be banned from entering the US.
"Western
civilisation is in a war. We should frankly test every person here who is of a
Muslim background and if they believe in Sharia they should be deported,"
Mr Gingrich told Fox News.
"Sharia
is incompatible with western civilisation. Modern Muslims who have given up
Sharia, glad to have them as citizens. Perfectly happy to have them next
door," he added.
What
is Sharia law?
Hours earlier, a
driver, identified by French media as Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel,rammed a lorry through a
crowd of people
celebrating Bastille Day before he was shot dead by police.
Witnesses
say the 31-year-old French Tunisian swerved the vehicle in an attempt to hit
more people.
Police
reportedly discovered guns and grenades inside the lorry.
No
group has claimed responsibility but French President Francois Hollande
described the tragedy as a terror attack.
Mr
Gingrich, who was in the frame as Mr Trump's potential running mate before Indiana Governor Mike Pence was asked, also
suggested monitoring US mosques and jailing anyone who visits websites
favouring a terror group.
"Anybody
who goes on a website favouring Isis, or al-Qaeda, or other terrorist groups,
that should be a felony, and they should go to jail," he added.
The
Council on American-Islamic Relations condemned the attack in Nice as well as
the former House Speaker's comments.
CAIR
National Executive Director Nihad Awaid said Mr Gingrich's suggestion that
American Muslims be subjected to an "Inquisition-style religious
test" plays into the hands of terror recruiters and "betrays American
values".
Mr Trump, who will be
confirmed as the Republican presidential nominee next week in Cleveland,
sparked international outrage last year after calling on the US to ban all Muslims from entering the country.
The proposal was roundly condemned by
Democrats and many Republicans, including his expected running mate Mr Pence.
He
later suggested the ban apply only to people coming from countries with a
terror history against the US.
Representative
Image
Source: BBC
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