Israel: Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar

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This past week, Israel has been in American news headlines on account of denying American freshmen congresswomen Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib entry into Israel. Representatives Omar from Minnesota and Tlaib from Michigan had planned on visiting the Palestinian territories in the West Bank and Gaza for months and had been approved by the Israeli government to do so; however, after being called upon by President Donald Trump, Benjamin Netanayhu reversed Israel’s approval of the congresswomen.

Representatives Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar have been outwardly anti-Israel in their political campaigns and have supported Boycott, Divestment, and Sanction (BDS), a Palestinian-led anti-Israel movement calling for the boycott of Israel. BDS has gained traction in recent years among American college youth, but is widely considered anti semitic among Jewish and zionist crowds. Omar and Tlaib have both come under fire within the past year for various anti semitic tropes, and in the wake of these controversies, the itinerary for their trip to Israel was shared with the Israeli government. Apparently, the itinerary only continued the congresswomen's boycott of Israel, referred to the destination as ‘Palestine’, and did not contain plans to visit any Israeli government or official. As a result of the biased itinerary, President Trump called on Benjamin Netanyhu in a tweet, saying the representatives shouldn’t be allowed into the country on account of their political views. 

Benjamin Netanyahu responded the same day by barring the two representatives from entering the country, despite the fact that they had already been approved and had publicly announced their trip. Personally, I deeply disagree with everything representatives Omar and Tlaib believe about Israel, and I’m upset that their itinerary in visiting the country was so focused on learning about only one side of such a complex political conflict, but I think few things could excuse banning these women from the country. Even AIPAC, the organization for the alliance between Israel and America, came out against this political move in a tweet. At best, it was an action taken out of weakness and pressure from America, and at worst, it was a racist attack on Muslim congresswomen of color. 

With the upcoming elections in Israel, Bibi is surely making strategic political plays. One of Bibi’s main accomplishments in his decade of leadership has been his strengthening of Israel’s relationship with America, an important bond to many Israelis. Having a strong relationship with America means protection for Israel, which has kept many Israelis on Bibi’s side. Even though Bibi’s decision to ban the congresswomen was horrible politically, I believe Bibi caved in order to keep close ties with Donald Trump; in doing so he also appealed to his right-wing conservative supporters in preparation for the election. 

The decision to ban the congresswomen has made Israel look like more of an aggressor, which so much of the western world -and the representatives themselves- already see it as. In reality, Israel is a democratic nation, and its citizens and visitors are allowed to express their thoughts and opinions, even if they are unpopular. I would hope that in traveling to such a politically complicated place like Israel/Palestine, Reps. Tlaib and Omar would take the time to perhaps view Israel in a different light; however, if they choose not to, which would be the subject of deserved criticism, it is their decision.