Democrat Rep. Ilhan Omar (MN) on Thursday tried to clarify her remark remarks where she compared the United States and Israel to Hamas terrorists after being called out by a dozen Jewish House Democrats.
Omar released a new statement looking to clarify a statement she made Monday after she already tried to defend the initial comment made.
She said, “On Monday, I asked Secretary of State Antony Blinken about an ongoing International Criminal Court Investigation.”
Omar wanted to further clarify by adding, “the conversation, was about accountability for specific incidents regarding those ICC cases, not a moral comparison between Hamas and the Taliban and the U.S. and Israel,” she noted, “I was in no way equating terrorist organizations with democratic countries with well-established judicial systems.”
On Wednesday, a coalition of a dozen Jewish House Democrats called out Omar for her remarks. The group said, “Equating the United States and Israel to Hamas and the Taliban is as offensive as it is misguided.”
They continued:
Ignoring the differences between democracies governed by the rule of law and contemptible organizations that engage in terrorism at best discredits one’s intended argument and at worst reflects deep-seated prejudice.
The United States and Israel are imperfect and, like all democracies, at times deserving of critique, but false equivalencies give cover to terrorist groups. We urge Congresswoman Omar to clarify her words placing the U.S. and Israel in the same category as Hamas and the Taliban.
Omar’s original remarks, which she posted on Twitter, were of her questioning of Blinken during a hearing Monday.
Breitbart News reported on Omar’s original remarks:
Omar posted a video on Twitter on Monday showing her speaking on a video call with Secretary of State Antony Blinken. “We must have the same level of accountability and justice for all victims of crimes against humanity. We have seen unthinkable atrocities committed by the U.S., Hamas, Israel, Afghanistan, and the Taliban,” she wrote on Twitter, echoing her remarks on the video.
Omar originally defended her remarks on Twitter while responding to the coalition Jewish House Democrats. She called the group “shameful” that the group could not call her instead of issuing a statement where they asked for “clarification.”
She continued, “The Islamophobic tropes in this statement are offensive. The constant harassment & silencing from the signers of this letter is unbearable.”
In a follow-up tweet, she defended her remarks: “Citing an open case against Israel, US, Hamas & Taliban in the ICC isn’t comparison or from ‘deeply seated prejudice,'” Omar wrote. “You might try to undermine these investigations or deny justice to their victims but history has thought us that the truth can’t be hidden or silenced forever.”
Omar’s original tweet of her remarks is still posted.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.