Omar to keynote event for ‘Hamas-linked’ organization

Leaders of the Council on American-Islamic Relations have compared Israel to ISIS but said that Hamas and Hezbollah are not terrorist groups. 

By World Israel News staff

Democratic Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar is scheduled to raise money in March with the Hamas-linked Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), reports the Daily Caller, a conservative American news and opinion website.

“CAIR-LA is honored to have Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (D-MN) as the featured speaker for the 4th Annual Valley Banquet,” says the council’s website.

Omar is to be the keynote speaker at the Los Angeles event on March 23rd to discuss advancing justice and empowering Muslims, according to the organization’s invitation. Single tickets start at $55 per person and a table can cost upwards of $500.

Hassan Shibly, the chief executive director for CAIR-Florida, will also be speaking at the event. Shibly has emphatically stated that Hezbollah and Hamas are not terrorist organizations, says a report in the Conservative Review, another U.S. conservative media company.

In 2014, Shibly claimed that the Hamas terror tunnels uncovered in Israel’s Operation Protective Edge in the northern Gaza Strip were “being used in the defense of Palestine.”

Hussam Ayloush, the chief executive director for CAIR-LA, who is hosting the event, compared the State of Israel to the Islamic State (ISIS) during a speech in April. Shibley has repeatedly echoed those sentiments and described U.S. armed forces as radical terrorists, says the Daily Caller.

The U.S. Department of Justice listed CAIR as an unindicted co-conspirator in funding millions of dollars to the terrorist organization Hamas. Additionally, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) named CAIR a terrorist organization along with al-Qaeda and ISIS in 2014.

Omar’s office did not return The Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment and clarification on whether raising money for CAIR exacerbates the “problematic role of lobbyists in politics” and, if not, the difference between fundraising for CAIR and AIPAC.

Earlier this month, Omar accused the AIPAC pro-Israel lobby group in Washington of paying off politicians to support the Jewish State.

In 2012, she tweeted: ” “Israel has hypnotized the world, may Allah awaken the people and help them see the evil doings of Israel.”

CAIR has defended comments made by Omar and Rep. Rashida Tlaib, another Muslim congresswoman who has sharply criticized Israel and – like Omar – called for boycotting the Jewish State.

In a recent statement, the council said that it “applauds Reps. Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib for their courage in speaking the truth about Israel’s racial, religious and ethnic segregation,” adding that “agenda-driven groups – like AIPAC – have for decades enabled that segregation and the resulting denial of human rights for Christian and Muslim Palestinians.”