Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

A First Look at Fresno State’s Quarterback Battle

2 days ago

Israeli Columnist Alleges Ethnic Cleansing Plan in Gaza

2 days ago

Tesla to Roll out Bay Area Robotaxis With Safety Drivers, Report Says

2 days ago

Thailand and Cambodia Exchange Heavy Artillery Fire as Border Battle Expands

2 days ago

California Cannot Require Background Checks to Buy Ammunition, US Appeals Court Rules

3 days ago

TikTok Will Go Dark in US Without Chinese Approval of Sale Deal, Lutnick Says

3 days ago

Fresno County Authorities Still Searching for Missing Mother and Infant

3 days ago
Israel Bars US Congresswomen - with Nudge from Trump
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 6 years ago on
August 15, 2019

Share

JERUSALEM — Israel said Thursday that it will bar two Democratic congresswomen from entering the country ahead of a planned visit over their support for a Palestinian-led boycott movement, a decision announced shortly after President Donald Trump tweeted that it would “show great weakness” to allow them in.
The move to bar Reps. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Ilhan Omar of Minnesota from visiting the close American ally appeared to be unprecedented, and marked a deep foray by Israel into America’s bitterly polarized politics. It is also a sharp escalation of Israel’s campaign against the international boycott movement.
Interior Minister Aryeh Deri issued a statement saying that after consultations with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials he decided not to allow Tlaib and Omar to enter because of “their boycott activities against Israel.”

Trump Says Congresswomen ‘a Disgrace’

The two newly-elected Muslim members of Congress are outspoken critics of Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians. Tlaib’s family immigrated to the United States from the West Bank.
Shortly before the decision was announced, Trump had tweeted that “it would show great weakness” if Israel allowed them to visit. “They hate Israel & all Jewish people, & there is nothing that can be said or done to change their minds.” He went on to call the two congresswomen “a disgrace.”


Israel has sought to combat the BDS movement, which advocates boycotts, divestment and sanctions against Israeli businesses, universities and cultural institutions. The country passed a law permitting a ban on entry to any activist who “knowingly issues a call for boycotting Israel.” Last month, however, Israeli ambassador to the U.S. Ron Dermer had said Israel would not deny entry to any member of Congress.

“This is not a surprise given the public positions of Prime Minister Netanyahu, who has consistently resisted peace efforts, restricted the freedom of movement of Palestinians, limited public knowledge of the brutal realities of the occupation and aligned himself with Islamophobes like Donald Trump,” — Rep. Ilhan Omar
Supporters of the boycott movement say it is a non-violent way to protest Israeli policies and call for Palestinian rights. Critics say the movement aims to delegitimize Israel and ultimately erase it from the map, replacing it with a binational state.

Congresswomen Respond

Omar denounced the decision as “an affront” and “an insult to democratic values.”
“This is not a surprise given the public positions of Prime Minister Netanyahu, who has consistently resisted peace efforts, restricted the freedom of movement of Palestinians, limited public knowledge of the brutal realities of the occupation and aligned himself with Islamophobes like Donald Trump,” she said in a statement.
Tlaib, whose family immigrated to the United States from the West Bank, where she still has close relatives, tweeted a photo of her grandmother and said she has the right to live “in peace & with human dignity.”


Israel said it would consider any request from Tlaib to visit relatives on humanitarian grounds.

Israel Regularly Hosts U.S. Delegations

Israel often hosts delegations of U.S. representatives and senators, who usually meet with senior Israeli officials as well as Palestinian officials in the occupied West Bank.
The decision to ban the congresswomen could further sharpen divisions among U.S. Democrats over Israel ahead of the 2020 elections. Republicans have amplified the views of left-wing Democrats like Tlaib and Omar to present the party as deeply divided and at odds with Israel. Democratic leaders have pushed back, reiterating the party’s strong support for Israel, in part to protect representatives from more conservative districts.

In July, the Democratic-led House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly in favor of a resolution against the BDS movement.
Tlaib and Omar have also been the target of repeated attacks by President Donald Trump in recent months, including a series of racist tweets on July 14 in which he said they should “go back” to the “broken” countries they came from. Both are U.S. citizens and Tlaib was born in the United States. The two are members of the so-called “Squad” of newly-elected left-wing Democrats, along with Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts.

American Jewish Organizations Object to Move

American Jewish organizations had objected to barring the two Democrats from entering the country. The American Jewish Congress said that despite Omar and Tlaib’s planned “propaganda exercise,” it believed that “the costs in the U.S. of barring the entry of two members of Congress may prove even higher than the alternative.”
Politicians and former diplomats also spoke out against barring the congresswomen from visiting.
Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro wrote on Twitter that the decision to bar their entry “harms Israel’s standing in the U.S., boosts BDS.”
Israeli lawmaker Ayman Odeh, leader of the Joint List of Arab parties, criticized the move, writing that “Israel has always banned Palestinians from their land and separated us from other Palestinians, but this time the Palestinian is a U.S. Congresswoman.”
Arthur Lenk, formerly Israel’s ambassador to South Africa, said barring Omar and Tlaib “would be sinking us deeper into U.S. domestic political quagmire.”


DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

California School Board Resigns After Audit Reveals $180M in Improper Funding

DON'T MISS

NASA Says 20% of Workforce to Depart Space Agency

DON'T MISS

Frustration, Gaza Alarm Drove Macron to Go It Alone on Palestine Recognition

DON'T MISS

Trump Golfs in Scotland as Epstein Questions Persist

DON'T MISS

Visalia Police Arrest Armed Robbery Suspect at Long John Silver’s

DON'T MISS

Grand Rising Brings Sober Day Party Vibes to Fresno

DON'T MISS

Jack McAuliffe, Who Started a Craft Beer Revolution, Dies at 80

DON'T MISS

Fresno Crash Leaves One Dead After Car Submerges in Canal

DON'T MISS

Lemoore Farmers Fed Up With Lack of Representation on Groundwater Agency

DON'T MISS

‘Jenny from the Block’ Rescued After Camping Out by Calwa ATM

UP NEXT

Frustration, Gaza Alarm Drove Macron to Go It Alone on Palestine Recognition

UP NEXT

Trump Golfs in Scotland as Epstein Questions Persist

UP NEXT

US Judge Reaffirms Nationwide Injunction Blocking Trump Executive Order on Birthright Citizenship

UP NEXT

White House Will Release $5.5 Billion for Schools, After Surprise Delay

UP NEXT

Gaza Running out of Specialized Food to Save Malnourished Children

UP NEXT

Israeli Columnist Alleges Ethnic Cleansing Plan in Gaza

UP NEXT

US States to Get $608 Million From FEMA to Build Migrant Detention Centers

UP NEXT

Trump: Strong Dollar Sounds Good but ‘You Make a Hell of a Lot More’ With a Weaker One

UP NEXT

Thailand and Cambodia Exchange Heavy Artillery Fire as Border Battle Expands

UP NEXT

Trump Says US May Not Have a Negotiated Trade Deal With Canada

Trump Golfs in Scotland as Epstein Questions Persist

23 hours ago

Visalia Police Arrest Armed Robbery Suspect at Long John Silver’s

23 hours ago

Grand Rising Brings Sober Day Party Vibes to Fresno

24 hours ago

Jack McAuliffe, Who Started a Craft Beer Revolution, Dies at 80

24 hours ago

Fresno Crash Leaves One Dead After Car Submerges in Canal

24 hours ago

Lemoore Farmers Fed Up With Lack of Representation on Groundwater Agency

1 day ago

‘Jenny from the Block’ Rescued After Camping Out by Calwa ATM

1 day ago

Tulare Officer Injured in Crash While Trying to Save Unresponsive Infant. Child Dies at Hospital

2 days ago

PBS Has a Future by Leaving the Past Behind: Opinion

2 days ago

Fresno Council Candidate Rassamni Says City Is Investigating Him Amid Allegations by Arias

2 days ago

California School Board Resigns After Audit Reveals $180M in Improper Funding

The entire board of directors overseeing Highlands Community Charter and Technical Schools in Sacramento has either resigned or been removed...

20 hours ago

The entire board of Highlands Community Charter in Sacramento stepped down after a state audit found the school improperly received over $180 million and engaged in questionable spending. (Shutter
20 hours ago

California School Board Resigns After Audit Reveals $180M in Improper Funding

The NASA logo is seen at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S., April 16, 2021. (Reuters File)
23 hours ago

NASA Says 20% of Workforce to Depart Space Agency

Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and French President Emmanuel Macron visit a ward for Palestinian patients at El Arish Hospital, close to the border with the Gaza Strip, in Arish, Egypt April 8, 2025. Ludovic Marin/Pool via REUTERS
23 hours ago

Frustration, Gaza Alarm Drove Macron to Go It Alone on Palestine Recognition

U.S. President Donald Trump golfs at Trump Turnberry resort in Turnberry, Scotland, Britain, July 26, 2025. (Reuters/Phil Noble)
23 hours ago

Trump Golfs in Scotland as Epstein Questions Persist

Noah Robinson, 38, was arrested after allegedly robbing a Visalia Long John Silver’s at knifepoint and attempting to flee through nearby backyards with $110 in stolen cash on Friday, July 25, 2025. (Visalia PD)
23 hours ago

Visalia Police Arrest Armed Robbery Suspect at Long John Silver’s

24 hours ago

Grand Rising Brings Sober Day Party Vibes to Fresno

Craft Brewer Jack McAuliffe With Jim Koch of Samuel Adams
24 hours ago

Jack McAuliffe, Who Started a Craft Beer Revolution, Dies at 80

fresno
24 hours ago

Fresno Crash Leaves One Dead After Car Submerges in Canal

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend