The Palestinian groups that sponsored the canceled trip to Israel by Tlaib and Omar promoted anti-Semitism, pushed boycotts of the Jewish state, sympathized with terrorists, and claimed Jews use “the blood of Christians in during Passover.”
Edited by: JV Staff
The Palestinian groups that were part of Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) and Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) canceled trip to Israel have a public record of openly expressing anti-Semitism, supporting the BDS movement, as well as fostering sympathy for and links to terrorist groups, according to a JNS report.
According to the itinerary released by Israel’s public broadcaster Kan, the congresswomen were scheduled to meet with people from Palestinian groups Miftah, which was also sponsoring the trip, and the Defense for Children International-Palestine (DCI-P).
As was reported by World Israel News, the decision to bar reflects Israel’s concern over potential incitement on the part of the two congresswomen while they are in Israel or the Palestinian-administered territories.
Omar and Tlaib have made statements that included anti-Semitic tropes, have supported anti-Israel groups, and have questioned Israel’s right to its land.
In July, Omar introduced a House resolution in support of BDS, which Tlaib co-sponsored. Tlaib compared the BDS movement to boycotts against Nazi Germany.
Omar has insinuated that the AIPAC pro-Israel lobby group in Washington pays off members of Congress to support Israel.
She and Tlaib have close ties with CAIR, the Council of American-Islamic Relations, which is believed to be linked with Hamas.
“While we do not support policies that would block these U.S. lawmakers from entering, we note how they exploit their standing to partner with groups such as Miftah that promote anti-Jewish hateand advocate against peace and coexistence, as well as at least one NGO linked to the PFLP terror group, the so-called Defense for Children International-Palestine,” NGO Monitor told JNS.
In his statement on Israel’s decision to bar the congresswomen, Netanyahu also noted the Palestinian group’s support for BDS and ties with terrorism.
“The itinerary of the two congresswomen reveals that the sole purpose of their visit is to harm Israel and increase incitement against it,” said Netanyahu. “In addition, the organization that is funding their trip is Miftah, which is an avid supporter of BDS, and among whose members are those who have expressed support for terrorism against Israel.”
Founded in 1998, Miftah’s vision is a “sovereign, independent, democratic, tolerant and inclusive Palestinian state, which grants Palestinians their basic rights, preserves their dignity, and enjoys international recognition and respect,” according to the group’s website.
Despite such claims, Miftah, which is mainly funded by a number of E.U. countries and the United Nations, has been tied to terrorist sympathizers and anti-Semites, and has openly accused Israel of committing atrocities and supported the BDS movement, according to a JNS report.
According to NGO Monitor, Miftah’s publications use highly politicized language, accusing Israel of “massacres,” “apartheid,” “summary executions” of Palestinian youth and “Judaizing” Jerusalem.
Miftah founder Hanan Ashrawi, also chair of its board of directors, has accused Israel of “persistent colonialism, apartheid, racism and victimization,” and said in a 2017 interview that Palestinian terrorist attacks “are seen by the people as resistance. And you cannot somehow adopt the language of either the international community or the occupier by describing anybody who resists as terrorists.”
Miftah’s website also praises Wafa Idress, a female suicide-bomber who killed an 81-year-old Israeli and wounded 150 others in January 2002 as part of the “resistance movement.”
In 2013, Miftah apologized for an article on its website using a blood libel and accusing Jews of using “the blood of Christians in the Jewish Passover.”
Similarly problematic, DCI-P, which is the Palestinian branch of the Geneva-based organization that says its mission is to “promote and protect the rights of Palestinian children,” has ties to the Popular Front of the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), which has been designated as a terror group by the United States, the European Union, Canada and Israel.
According to NGO Monitor, several past and present board members and employees of the group have ties to PFLP.
“DCI-P leads the campaign exploiting children to promote demonization of Israel and is linked to the PFLP terror group. Many of its allegations are false and part of attempts to smear Israel with allegations of “war crimes” and “promote BDS,” said NGO Monitor.
DCI-P has also been behind the anti-Israel legislation introduced by Rep. Betty McCollum (D-Minn.), which Omar and Tlaib are co-sponsors.
Daniel Pipes, president of the Middle East Forum, told JNS the he views the Palestinian groups as more extreme than Omar and Tlaib.
“The groups associated with the planned Omar-Tlaib visit to ‘Palestine’ are perhaps even more extreme than these two members of Congress in their hatred of Jews and Israel. This fact points to the effort needed either to educate the duo, discredit them or work against their re-election.”
However, he added, “it does not make excluding them from Israeli-controlled territory a good decision.”
Jewish leaders have also weighed on with their opinion on the Israeli move. In a statement sent to the media, Rabbi Abraham Cooper, the associate dean and director of global social action of the of the internationally renowned Simon Wiesenthal Center said, “Representatives Omar and Tlaib are unapologetic anti-Semites and supporters of the anti-peace BDS movement. The congresswomen should have joined dozens of their colleagues who recently visited Israel and Palestinian territories. Still, the first instinct of Israeli officials to let them into the country was right one.”
In a statement released to the media, the Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) said that they “strongly support Israel’s decision to refuse entry of Israelophobic Jew-haters Rep Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar into Israel. Tlaib and Omar seek Israel’s destruction and are leading promoters of anti-Jewish, anti-Israel boycotts, divestment and sanctions (BDS). They even outrageously compare boycotting Israel to boycotting Nazis.
Israeli laws refusing entry to anti-Israel boycott leaders surely should apply to Tlaib and Omar.
The Israeli Supreme Court recognized that BDS is a dangerous “massive delegitimization campaign” facing Israel and recognized the need to take steps to counteract it. Israeli Supreme Court Justice Hanan Melzer accurately described BDS as “political terrorism.” Israel should not allow political terrorists into the country.” (JNS)
