Democratic Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar deleted tweets about Israel on Monday night that have sparked negative media attention and condemnation.
The oldest tweet she deleted, which was first reported by Jerry Dunleavy of the Washington Examiner, was posted in Nov. 2012, and it read, “Israel has hypnotized the world, may Allah awaken the people and help them see the evil doings of Israel #Gaza #Palestine #Israel.”
At the time, the Israeli Defense Forces’ eight-day Operation Pillar of Defense, during which they were responding to rockets being fired into Israel.
Washington Examiner’s Jerry Dunleavy was the first to report the deletion.
Congresswoman @IlhanMN deleted these anti-Semitic tweets today. pic.twitter.com/Vz7nn0W9WM
— Jerry Dunleavy (@JerryDunleavy) February 26, 2019
Omar previously defended that tweet in an interview with Christiane Amanpour in January, saying, “What is really important to me is that people recognize that there is a difference between criticizing a military action by a government that has exercised really oppressive policies and being offensive or attacking to particular people of faith.”
She then stood by the comment once again in an interview days later on CNN, but later apologized for “unknowingly” using an anti-Semitic trope. (RELATED: House Overwhelmingly Approves Motion To Condemn Anti-Semitism Amid Omar Fallout)
Rep Ilhan Omar (D-MN)speaks to media outside the US Captiol on January 15, 2019 … (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)
Omar also deleted two tweets that received media backlash earlier this week in which she accused the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) of buying congressional support for Israel. (RELATED: Omar Releases Statement After Backlash Surrounding Tweet Accusing AIPAC Of Buying Israel Support)
Omar was widely rebuked by members of both parties for what Speaker Pelosi described as using “anti-Semitic tropes.” After the speaker issued her condemnation, she issued an apology on Twitter.
“Anti-Semitism is real, and I am grateful for Jewish allies and colleagues who are educating me on the painful history of anti-Semitic tropes. My intention is never to offend my constituents or Jewish Americans as a whole,” her statement read in part.
Omar’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
