Omar co-authors CNN anti-Semitism op-ed, no mention of personal run-ins

Embattled congresswoman Ilhan Omar wrote an article with a Jewish colleague condemning Jew-hatred and Islamophobia, without mentioning the persistent accusations of anti-Semitism she has faced.

By World Israel News Staff

Freshman Democratic lawmaker Ilhan Omar co-authored an op-ed published by CNN this week condemning hatred of Jews and Muslims.

Omar, who is Muslim, wrote the piece with Democratic congresswoman Jan Schakowsky, who is Jewish.

In the article, Omar and Schakowsky explain, “As a Muslim American and a Jewish American elected to the United States Congress, we can no longer sit silently as terror strikes our communities,” referring explicitly to the recent deadly shooting at a California synagogue in April and the mosque massacre in New Zealand in March.

Omar and Schakowsky continue, “We cannot allow those who seek to divide and intimidate us to succeed. Whatever our differences, our two communities, Muslim and Jewish, must come together to confront the twin evils of anti-Semitic and Islamophobic violence.”

While the article notes that Jews “for centuries have faced discrimination, dehumanization, scapegoating and even genocide,” Omar opted not to address the persistent accusations of anti-Semitism she has faced over the past several years.

These accusations followed posts on social media in which Omar claimed that Israel “hypnotiz[es] the world,” practices “apartheid,” commits “evil doings,” and relies on lobbyists in the U.S. to bribe elected officials in order to ensure support.

In the run-up to her election to the House of Representatives, Omar also told a 1,000-strong crowd at a Minneapolis area synagogue that she deems the anti-Israel BDS boycott movement “unhelpful.” One week after winning the election, she admitted to the MuslimGirl.com website that she has always supported BDS.

Omar has also invoked the notion that support for Israel represents a “push for allegiance to a foreign country,” which many have identified as an extension of the anti-Semitic dual loyalty trope foisted on Jewish communities in nations throughout the world.

In addition to their discussion of anti-Semitism and Islamophobia in the CNN piece, Omar and Schakowsky also accuse President Donald Trump of “normaliz[ing] white nationalism.”