Ilhan Omar Image by Getty Images

WASHINGTON (JTA) — Rep. Ilhan Omar hit back at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after they called out the first-year congresswoman at the AIPAC policy conference for her attacks on the lobby and support for the Israel boycott movement.

Pelosi, D-Calif., told the American Israel Public Affairs Committee’s annual confab on Tuesday that the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement targeting Israel was a form of bigotry.

Americans must “be vigilant against bigoted or dangerous ideologies masquerading as policy, and that includes BDS,” she said to applause.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

Omar, D-Minn., and a fellow freshman to whom she is close, Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., back BDS.

Asked by reporters about Pelosi’s statement, Omar was quoted by The Hill as saying, “A condemnation for people that want to exercise their First Amendment rights is beneath any leader, and I hope that we find a better use of language when we are trying to speak as members of Congress that are sworn to protect the Constitution.”

Pelosi also noted to AIPAC that the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly condemned the anti-Semitic dual loyalty canard — one Omar had been accused of invoking when she said she felt pressure to pledge “allegiance” to Israel.

Omar’s remarks on Netanyahu came on Twitter. On Tuesday, the prime minister mocked Omar in his address to AIPAC for suggesting lawmakers backed Israel only because it brought in campaign money.

“The reason the people of America support Israel is not because they want our money, it’s because they share our values,” Netanyahu said.

Omar’s response: “This from a man facing indictments for bribery and other crimes in three separate public corruption affairs.”

The post Ilhan Omar lashes out at Pelosi, Netanyahu for their AIPAC jabs at her appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a gift today!

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$90 $180

$360

Other amount