Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-MI, slammed Israel in a series of social media posts after Hamas launched a surprise assault, which killed hundreds of Israeli citizens. The violence has so far claimed the lives of 1,000 Israelis and at least 14 Americans. Approximately 2,700 people have been injured in the violence.
Omar seemed to not care about these trivial details. She used X (formerly Twitter) to criticize Israel for its announcement that it would be laying a siege on the Gaza Strip – the territory controlled by Hamas.
Gaza is populated by “mostly” children who “live in extreme poverty,” according to the lawmaker.
Gaza’s 2+ million population are mostly children, who live under blockade in what Israel’s own former intelligence chief has called an open air prison.
The overwhelming majority live in poverty.
Many suffer lifelong psychological and physical trauma. 🧵https://t.co/cu36UZ0hTp
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) October 9, 2023
Omar went on to say that, “while the world condemns Hamas attacks, it is also important that we oppose the Israeli military response, which has already claimed the lives of nearly two dozen Palestinian children, as well as hundreds of Palestinians.”
This conflict has tragically ended the lives of innocents on both sides. Nobody can deny the deaths of innocent children – whether Israelis or Palestinians – except, perhaps, Ilhan Omar who has little to say about Hamas, which started the conflict. She did not mention that Hamas is responsible for the violence in the Middle East, which has affected both Israelis and Palestinians.
Omar said that Palestinians have limited recourses to justice and accountability after referring to Israel’s occupation policies in the West Bank, which “meets the definition of Apartheid.”
Omar falsely claimed, too, that Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant called all Palestinians “human animals” in discussing the siege. This is a lie. Gallant clearly meant Hamas members who carried out vicious attacks on Israeli civilians. IDF forces found reportedly the beheaded bodies of babies.
Omar’s comments raise an important question.
Why is Hamas not being rebuked for its systematic oppression of those who live under Hamas’ rule in the Gaza Strip if her passion for Palestinians is so deep? They are making these people suffer more than necessary by continuing to engage violently in activities that provoke Israel’s retaliation. Her relative silence suggests that Hamas killing Israeli men, women, and children was not a big deal. If Omar, and those like her, cared as much about the Palestinians as they do Israel’s government they would be as furious as they are for Hamas.
Omar isn’t the only hypocrite who displays this kind of hypocrisy. Rep. Cori Bush (D-MI), suggested that funding be cut to Israel, but not to the Palestinians who are ruled by Hamas. The United Nations condemned Israel’s Gaza siege for violating international laws but said little about Hamas’s war crimes.
It is not about helping Palestinian refugees. Sadly, they are the ones who will suffer most in the long run.
