Israel Banned Reps. Tlaib And Omar From Visiting — And Trump Only Made It Worse

While President Donald Trump stroked tensions between two Democratic U.S. Congresswomen and the state of Israel, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blocked Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn) and Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich) from visiting the nation and the Palestinian territories, according to NPR.


Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely mentioned the nation would resist entry to “those who decline our right to exist in the world,” according to Israeli radio.


“The two-member congressional visitation plan shows that their intent is to hurt Israel and increase its unrest against it,” Netanyahu claimed, according to The Hill. Although, if Congresswoman Tlaib filed a humanitarian request to meet her family member members, subject to a commitment that she would not act to promote the boycotts against Israel, the interior minister reported he would imagine this request.” Rep. Tlaib is of Palestinian descent; she memorably wore a customary Palestinian thobe for her swearing-in as Congresswoman.


Both representatives are vocal critics of President Trump, Prime Minister Netanyahu, and Trump’s seemingly unequivocal support of Israel — particularly by voting against a nonbinding resolution condemning a Palestinian-led movement that advocates for boycotting, divestment, and sanctions directed at Israel for its occupation of the West Bank and violations of human rights against Palestinian  people, according to The Atlantic. Trump, tweeting that Israel could be “weak” to let the Congresswomen into the nation, only stroked the controversy further.


“It would show excellent weakness if Israel allowed Rep. Omar and Rep. Tlaib to visit,” Trump tweeted on Thursday, August 15. He also conflated their past stances to serve as his own propaganda, falsely claiming: “They hate Israel & all Jewish people, & there really is nothing that can be mentioned or done to change their minds. Minnesota and Michigan will have a hard time putting them back in office. They're a disgrace!”


Other politicians and allies have since condemned Trump's rhetoric. "It is disgusting that a bigot like Trump is attacking [Rep. Tlaib] and [Rep. Omar] in this way," Senator Bernie Sanders mentioned on Twitter about Trump's weaponization of anti-Semitism to promote his own xenophobic agenda. "Opposing Netanyahu's policies isn't 'hating the Jewish people.' We must stand with each other against those who promote hatred and racism in Israel, Palestine, the U.S. And everywhere."


The block, which comes as a reversal from a previous choice to admit the representatives, only bans the politicians while in official visits, according to the New York Times. Israel officials mentioned on Friday, August 16 that Tlaib, the opening Palestinian American elected to Congress, could be allowed to visit her 90-year-old grandmother as long as she promised to “not promote boycotts” while in her visit.


Yet Tlaib won’t be visiting her grandmother, she wrote in a Tweet sent on Friday, August 16.


“When I won, it gave the Palestinian people hope that someone will finally speak the truth about the inhumane conditions,” Tlaib tweeted. “I can't permit the State of Israel to take away that light by humiliating me & use my love for my sity to bow down to their oppressive & racist policies.”


Omar, who, as well as Tlaib was one of the initial Muslim girls to be elected to Congress, echoed Tlaib’s statement.


“It is an affront that Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, under pressure from President Trump, would deny entry to representatives of the U.S. Government,” Omar wrote.